


Rush and the Devil's Deal

by Antarctic_Echoes



Series: Luciferian Fics (One shots) [18]
Category: Lucifer (TV), Rush (TV 2014)
Genre: F/M, Implied Drug Use, Only Lucifer can clean it up, Rush's life is a mess, Strong Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-25
Updated: 2017-01-31
Packaged: 2018-09-19 21:06:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,185
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9460409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antarctic_Echoes/pseuds/Antarctic_Echoes
Summary: How many of you have seen Tom Ellis in Rush (2014)?  If you have, you’ll remember that it ended in a horrible cliffhanger.  This is my take on the conclusion of Rush.Lucifer tries to untangle the mess that is William Rush’s life.  Occurs between Lucifer S2x08 and S2x09, and right after Rush S1x10.LOTS of spoilers for those who have not watched Rush.





	1. The Deal

**Author's Note:**

  * For [mishasan7](https://archiveofourown.org/users/mishasan7/gifts), [Grym](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grym/gifts), [skaoi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/skaoi/gifts), [Vendetta1897](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vendetta1897/gifts).



> Dedicated to:  
> mishasan7, Grym and skaoi who all wanted a Rush/Lucifer crossover.  
> Vendetta1897 for scrambling to watch all of Rush in 3 days in order to be ready and up to speed for this story.
> 
> And a super-huge thank you to my excellent beta, Scooterthyme, for the wonderful beta and the contribution! YOU ROCK!!!
> 
> This story is a little different from my other ones. More than anything, it’s a fix to the last episode of “Rush,” so some of you might find it a little dry. I tried my best to get everything resolved, but it’s not perfect. I didn’t rewatch the entire series, i just hopped in, so I hope I got all the tiny details right.
> 
> I am not in the medical profession, nor am I a police officer. I know nothing of forensic science or police procedure. There are inaccuracies in this story, but it was the only way I could solve this quandary and still have a satisfying ending. I had to work with what I had been given (the manner in which J. P. met his end in episode 10). I apologize in advance for all mistakes. I do hope you will take it for what it is, suspend your belief for a bit, and enjoy this conclusion to the series “Rush.”
> 
>  
> 
> Disclaimer: Lucifer Morningstar, Chloe Decker, Trixie Decker, Ella Lopez and Olivia Monroe are owned by Vertigo Comics, DC Comics, Neil Gaiman, Mike Carey, and everyone else involved with the Lucifer TV show and comic books. Will, Warren and Corinne Rush, Alex Burke, Eve Parker, and Sarah Peterson are owned by Jonathan Levine and everyone else involved with the Rush TV show. I own nothing and make no money on this. I merely am borrowing the characters for... uh... writing practice.

 

 

“Decker, your partner has just been brought in on drug possession.”

Chloe gaped at Lieutenant Monroe’s announcement.  Her mind spun as she stared at the woman standing in front of her desk.  Surely there was some mistake?  She had been with Lucifer since the afternoon, having had to go to Trixie’s school for the parent/teacher conference in the morning.  As she did her “boring” paperwork, he threw wads of paper at her head, then wandered off to flirt with various officers around the station.  Afterward, he returned to her and threw _more_ wads of paper at her head.  He had finally thrown up his hands, complaining that she was working too late into the night, before leaving for LUX.  That was just an hour ago.  What kind of trouble could he have possibly gotten himself into, in an hour?

But wait -- this was Lucifer.  Oh god....

“What happened?” she asked as she stared up at her superior.

The dark-haired woman shook her head.  “I’m not sure of the circumstances, but I saw the officers take him in to get booked.  He’s also under suspicion of negligent discharge of a firearm, although we haven’t ascertained the full details.  He’ll be in interrogation room A.  I’m assigning Johnson and Waller to the case.”

Chloe was still reeling from the news.  “Wait, wait, wait, wait.  You cannot come here, tell me my partner has been arrested and then tell me I’m not on the case.”

Monroe snorted as she planted her hands on her hips.  “I believe I just did.”

“No.  I want in on this,” Chloe said, standing up.  “He’s my partner --”

“You’re emotionally involved --”

“Lieutenant, you know how Lucifer is.  He’ll talk to me more readily than to Johnson and Waller.”  She looked at her, her aqua eyes cool despite the flutter of panic she felt in her gut.  “If he’s in trouble, then I want to help him.  I’m sure I can get to the bottom of everything.”

Monroe stared at her for a long moment, before finally nodding.  “All right.  It’s against my better judgment, but go ahead and talk to him.”

“Thank you.”  Chloe rounded her desk and strode past the lieutenant, heading quickly to the interrogation room.  Her stomach twisted into knots as her heart started pounding furiously.  Surely there was some mistake...?

“Lucifer, what the hell have you done?!” she muttered to herself.

When she entered the small, spartan room, Waller -- a big, burly detective who she had never really liked -- turned to look at her with a scowl.  “This is my case, Decker,” he snapped.

“The lieutenant’s letting me sit in,” she said as she sat down at the table beside him, then looked carefully at the man leaning back in his chair across from her.

It was Lucifer, for there was no mistaking his familiar face, the five o’clock shadow -- although slightly heavier than he normally had it -- and his tall, lanky figure.  Yet he looked... different.  Chloe took in his hair, cropped very short, and the light grey suit he was wearing.  In the year that she had known him, Lucifer never wore anything but dark suits.  It was disconcerting to see him in anything else.  Chloe noted the blood stain on his upper left arm -- apparently he had changed after being injured, for the suit material was not damaged.  His pupils were dilated, and he kept sniffing, like he had a runny nose....  Had he been snorting cocaine?

“Oh my god, are you high?” she asked, shocked.  She had never seen Lucifer high.  He drank like a fish, but never seemed to get drunk.  To see him on drugs shook her.  Something horrible must have happened.

“Of course not.  I’m in perfect control of all my mental faculties,” he ground out, sounding for all the world like he had lived his whole life in Southern California.  Chloe stared at him in disbelief.  The harsh notes of his words, pronouncing all the r’s, jolted her -- where were the suave, dulcet tones of London?  And... he was lying.  Lucifer _never_ lied to her....

“We found half a gram of coke in his bag,” Waller said.  “We picked him up at Million Air, ready to flee the country.”

“I wasn’t fleeing the country!  I was going away for the weekend.  You can even ask the flight crew --”

“There must be some mistake, Waller,” Chloe interrupted.  Her eyes narrowed as she studied her partner.  “Lucifer, what the hell happened to you?”

His mouth twisted as he gave her a weird look.  “Did -- did you just call me the Devil?”  He barked out a mocking laugh.  “I’ve been called a lot of things, but that’s a first.”

“He insists he’s William Rush, M.D.,” the other detective said with a roll of his eyes.  “We’ve got him on file under that alias, although everyone knows who he is.  I don’t know why he insists on calling himself that.”

“I am who I say I am,” the man said angrily.  “William Rush is my name -- although everyone just calls me Rush -- and I _am_ a doctor.  Look, why am I here?  Either lock me up or let me go....  I don’t care which.”

“A Manny Maquis said you fired a gun that we found on him -- that when you shot a guy, he took it away from you.  Care to elaborate?” Waller quizzed.

The tall man under suspicion shook his head.  “I didn’t fire the gun.  Manny took it away from me, but that was after --”  he broke off.

When it became apparent that he wasn’t going to say more, Chloe turned to the burly blonde detective beside her.  “Can I talk to him alone?”

Waller snorted and stood up; the sound of his chair scraping against the floor echoed loudly in the room.  “He’s your partner.  Be my guest.”

After the detective closed the door, she turned to her partner.  “Talk to me.  What happened?”

The tall man blinked at her, then shook his head, a puzzled look on his face.  “Why the hell should I tell you anything? Who are you, my defense attorney?”

Her mouth falling open, Chloe stared hard at him.  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just what I asked.  Who are you?”

The blonde detective leaned against the backrest of her chair, stunned.  Lucifer didn’t know who she was?  Had he hit his head?  Or was William Rush his true identity, before he reinvented himself as Lucifer Morningstar?  She knew he didn’t have a past beyond six years....  Had he been in a fugue state this entire time?  What kind of trauma had he experienced that would jolt him back to his old identity?

“You don’t know who I am...?”

He shrugged.  “Never seen you before in my life.”

“We worked together for a year.  You don’t remember?” Chloe asked.

He gave her a mocking look.  “Look, lady, I think you must have me mistaken with someone else.  I’ve been busy working my ass off on medical cases for the past few weeks in order to clean up my life, although I now realize that _that_ is a lost cause.”

Her brows furrowed.  “What do you mean?”

He sighed heavily as he stabbed his fingers in his cropped hair.  “Look, I lost the love of my life tonight because my life is shit and I’ll drag her down into the mud, so just throw me in jail, will you?  Or else let me go.”

That sounded a little more like the Lucifer she knew -- bitter, self-loathing and possessed of a bleak outlook.  She winced at his statement that he lost the love of his life.  Had Lucifer fallen in love with someone and she hadn’t even known?  She clenched her teeth as a burning sensation stabbed her chest.  No, she was not jealous.  No, no, no.  He could fall in love with anyone he wanted... even one of those bimbo Brittanys, damn him.  Well, she wasn’t going to let that fact get in the way of the investigation.

As she opened her mouth to question him about the gun, Chloe was distracted by the sound of her phone ringing.  Holding up her index finger to the man across from her, she checked the phone.  It read “Lucifer Morningstar.”

She pondered over the caller ID for a few seconds before answering.  Had someone stolen Lucifer’s phone?  Excusing herself from the tall man, she walked outside into the hall.  “Hello?”

“Detective!”  Lucifer’s happy voice purred in her ear.  “Still stuck at the office, my dear?  I know I just saw you an hour ago, but might you be able to stop by LUX for a drink?  We should celebrate solving the case of the multiple homicides, even though the weapon went missing --”

Chloe gawked at the phone with wide eyes, before glancing at the door she had just shut behind her.  What the hell?!  With a shaking hand, she brought the device back up to her ear.  “Lucifer, is that you?”

“Well, of course!  Who else would it be?”  When she didn’t answer, his tone became serious.  “Detective, are you all right?”

“Where... where are you right now?”  She couldn’t prevent the slight tremor in her voice.  In the brief pause before he answered, she could feel his puzzlement through the connection.  Well, hello, she was confused, as well!

“Why... at LUX, darling.  Where else would I be?”

“In interrogation room A...?”

“What?  I’m afraid I don’t understand.”

Chloe cracked open the door and stared at the man sitting in the interrogation room.  “I’m staring at you right now.”

“Really?”  His voice regained its jovial air.  “You’re here at LUX?  Where?  I don’t see you, but then again, it’s quite crowded --”

“Lucifer, I’m here at work.”

“But you just said you’re staring at me --”

“I am.”

“Do you have me confused with my old man...?  He’s the omnipresent one.  Well... supposedly.”

She shook her head as her heart pounded and her hands started to shake uncontrollably.  “I can’t explain.  Just come to the station as quick as you can.  I’ll be in Interrogation Room A.”

“Detective, what’s wrong?”  Concern laced his voice.

“Just come, Lucifer.  I’ll be waiting for you.”

He sighed heavily.  “Right.  Very well, I’ll be there shortly, although I’ll have you know you’re putting a crimp in my lifestyle.”

The line went dead.  Chloe stared at her phone for a long moment, feeling as if the world had taken two steps to the left, but she hadn’t.  Rubbing her forehead to dispel the lightheaded feeling overcoming her, she pushed the door open fully and let herself in.

“My associate will be coming shortly.  In the meantime, why don’t you make yourself comfortable and tell me about the gun?” she asked as she sat down across from the tall man.

He flung his hand in the air.  “Why not ask Manny?”

“Well, we have him in another room, and he’s telling us his version of events,” she bluffed.  “So why don’t you tell us yours?”

“No, thanks.”

“Okay, then we’ll wait.”

“Whatever.”

  


________________________________________

 

 

Lucifer walked into the precinct and was greeted by a lot of strange looks.  He wasn’t quite sure of the reason, but shrugged it off as inexplicable human behavior.  He didn’t know why Chloe had wanted him to return, and he almost didn’t, but the tone of her voice had worried him.  Dressed in his spiffy black suit with his favorite plum shirt, he strode down the halls to Interrogation Room A and whipped open the door.

The occupants turned to look at him -- Chloe and a man who looked remarkably like him, had it not been for the almost spartan cut of his hair.  A devilish smile lit the fallen angel’s face as his eyes lit up with excitement.

“Well, what have we here?” he asked as he shut the door behind him and approached the man at the table.  “Detective, where have you been hiding this fine fellow?”

The detective’s gaze went from Lucifer, to the man, then back to him.  “I never would have believed it,” she breathed, then shook her head, as if to clear it.  Glancing up at him, she said, “This is William Rush.”

“Indeed?” Lucifer asked, still grinning wolfishly as he lowered himself into the empty chair across from his doppelganger.

“Who are you?” the man called Rush asked, his mouth gaping open.  “And why the hell do you look like me?”

The fallen angel leaned forward on the table, his eyes glinting in the fluorescent lighting.  “I believe _you_ look like _me.”_  He swiveled in his chair and preened in front of the two-way mirror.  “After all, you must admit that I am the very essence of perfection.”

“Oh for crying out loud,” Chloe said with a roll of her eyes.

The tall man leaned toward the Devil, his eyes hard.  “Don’t tell me you’re my brother.  I wouldn’t put it past Dad --”

A bark of laughter escaped Lucifer.  “I would, the bloody bastard.”

“So what are we, long lost twins, or something?”

The Devil snorted with contempt.  “As much as you’d like to think so -- no.  I know all of my brothers and sisters, and you’re not one of them... although Dad _has_ gone the human route, before....”

Rush’s eyebrows climbed toward his hairline as confusion crossed his features.  “Excuse me?”

Chloe rolled her eyes.  “Lucifer, can you please concentrate?”

“Lucifer?  As in the Devil?” Rush’s eyes widened, before he laughed.  “You can’t be serious.”

“Quite serious,” Lucifer said as he returned his gaze to the man across the table.  He gave a short bow of his head.  “Lucifer Morningstar, at your service.”

“Well this is a first,” the tall man said.  “Interviewed by the Devil!  What’s next?  Are you taking me to a kangaroo court?”

“Oooh, a kangaroo court?”  The fallen angel’s eyes lit up with glee.  “Do they really exist?  I’d love to see a kangaroo in a courtroom.  Tell me, does the marsupial serve in the jury, or is it perhaps the judge?”

“Lucifer, stop,” Chloe warned, a steely glint in her aqua eyes.  He ignored her and stood up to get closer to the suspect.

“Hmmm.  You look remarkably like me, but your accent is deplorable.  The five o’clock shadow is a shade too heavy -- you make me look like a thug.  We really must do something about that hair, as well.  And those clothes!  Deplorable!  Dark colors would suit you far better, unless it’s summer, in which case a fine white linen will do --”

Rush stared at him as if he was insane.  “Are you serious?!  And I’ll have you know this is an Armani --”

“You could have fooled me.  You need a better tailor --”

“Lucifer!” Chloe barked.  “Concentrate, will you?  Can you just work your mojo on him?”

He turned to his partner with a pout.  “Really, Detective, must you always think of work?  I mean, just look at this splendid specimen of humanity!  Well, other than his horrid appearance.  I refuse to have him giving me a bad name!  He obviously needs a makeover --”

“Lucifer!”  Chloe’s strangled cry had him glancing at her, regret in his eyes.

“Oh, very well, Detective.”  Under his breath he muttered, “Such a spoilsport.”

_“What_ did you say?”

“I said you’re a spoilsport!  Always thinking about work.  When do you ever stop to smell the roses?  Or my cologne, for that matter?  I never see you take appreciative whiffs of me when I’m nearby.  I’ll have you know it’s the finest from Paris --”

Chloe slapped her palm to her forehead.  “Oh my god....”

“Dad has nothing to do with my cologne!” Lucifer said with a frown as he sat back down beside her.

Chloe looked like she wanted to throw a chair at his head.  “Lucifer, so help me, if you don’t start behaving --”

He held up his hand to calm her down.  “Very well, very well....”  Taking a deep breath, he turned to look at the suspect, who had watched their interaction with amusement.  “Now then, Mister Rush --”

“Rush.”

Lucifer blinked.  “Excuse me?”

“Just call me Rush.”

“Right.  Rush.  What is it you desire?”

The tall man did a double-take, sitting up a little straighter in his chair, as he stared at his interrogator.  “W-what?”

Lucifer leaned forward on the table, his eyes intense as he applied his charm.  “Oh come now, surely there must be something you desire?  Why don’t you tell me?”

Rush’s eyes glazed over and his lips parted.  “W-what do I... desire?”

“Yes, yes.  Come on, you can tell me.”  The fallen angel grinned, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.  “What is it you truly desire in that deep, dark heart of yours?  Hmmm?”

“I... I want to be the man Sarah wants me to be, so that I can marry her,” the man said in a daze.

“Oh.  How utterly mundane,” Lucifer muttered as he sat back.  There was nothing more sad than a man willing to give up everything for a woman.  The fact that he was beginning to feel the same sort of feelings for Chloe was something he completely ignored.  Surely the poor sod wanted something a little more exciting?  “But... don’t you desire something else?”

“I want....”

“Yes?”

“I want my life to be fixed.”  He snapped out of the daze as he stared up at Lucifer.  “I’d do anything for Sarah -- she’s the love of my life.”

A deal!  Oh, this was promising!  He was always one for deals, and he might need a doctor someday, considering his mortality sitch around the detective....  “Anything?  Really?”

Rush ran his hand through his cropped hair.  “Shit, I’d sell my soul to the Devil if I could get my life in order and get Sarah back.”

Lucifer’s eyes lit up with unholy glee.  “Well, you’ve come to the right person!”

“Lucifer....”  Chloe gave him a warning look.  “Don’t you dare do anything illegal.”

“My dear Detective, you wound me!  Would I do something like that in your presence?” he asked as he widened his eyes and gave her a puppy-dog look, to which she flung up her hands and looked skyward.  Turning to his double, Lucifer grinned widely.  “Now then... what if I helped you out of your mess and got you your Sarah back?”

Rush looked at him suspiciously.  “Why would you do that?”

“I’m Lucifer Morningstar, remember?  The Devil?”

Snorting, the doctor scoffed, “Yeah.  Right.  And what do you get out of it?”

“A favor... to be called in at a later date.”

“My life is a shitfest,” Rush warned.

“Ooooh, a challenge!” Lucifer said, rubbing his hands together excitedly.  “Very well.  Do we have an agreement?”  He chanced a glance at his partner, who was giving him the evil eye.  “What?  I’m just trying to help the poor sod.  Isn’t that what the police are for?  To help people?”

“We are here to help people, but we’re also after the truth.  If he’s guilty of a crime --”

“Then he’ll pay for it,” the Devil assured her before turning back to Rush and holding out his hand.  “Do we have an agreement?”

The tall man thought for a moment, then said, “What the hell.  If you can fix my screwed up life and get me back together with Sarah, I’m game.”  They sealed the agreement with a handshake, which had Chloe looking on in disgust.

Lucifer smiled as he planted his elbows on the table and laced his fingers together.  “Very well.  Tell this fine detective everything she wants to know, but admit nothing until we find out exactly what has happened....”

 

 


	2. Sorting Out a Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A very big thank you to my wonderful beta, ScooterThyme! You rock!

 

 

Lucifer went with Chloe and the CSI team to J. P. Harris’s large house tucked away in a quiet part of Sherman Oaks.  It had been very easy for him to get Lieutenant Monroe to transfer the case from Johnson and Waller to them, although Waller had not been pleased.  The fallen angel rubbed his knuckles against his suit jacket and grinned.  He always loved flexing his persuasive skills, even though they never seemed to impress the detective -- which really shouldn’t bother him as much as it did....

The Devil’s expression grew grim as he thought about what Rush had told them at the police station.  If there were ever a man who needed punishment, it was J. P.  Harris.  He had tried to rape Rush’s assistant, Eve Parker, so she had shot him in self defense and ran.  After the man had threatened to harm Eve if Rush didn’t help him, the doctor had gone to stitch the assailant’s wound up.  J. P. then harassed Eve over the phone, so Rush had gone to talk sense into the man, but ended up with a bullet in his arm for his troubles.  Rush then tackled J. P. onto a glass coffee table in order to get the gun away from him, whereupon the man died.

The fallen angel sighed.  If only he were still in Hell -- he would have such wonderful torture lined up for that despicable soul!

As the group of police officers entered the premises, cordoning off the area and taking photos of everything, Lucifer followed Ella Lopez around the crime scene.  The lab tech was excellent at what she did, and he wanted to see what she would find.  Chloe followed closely behind him and grabbed his arm.

“We are here to find out the truth, Lucifer -- not skew the evidence in Rush’s favor,” she told him in a low voice.

He shot her an indignant look.  “You wound me, Detective!  I am merely curious as to what Ella may find.”

Chloe’s eyes bored into his.  “Hmm.  I wonder.”

“No sign of a forced entry,” Ella said.  “Looks like the door was either open, or the intruder was let in.”

“Well, Rush did say he and J. P. used to be friends,” the blonde detective said.  “Maybe he let him in?”

“That could be, but... look at this,” Ella said, calling them over.  “Blood in the entry.”  She pointed to the spatters on the tile, along with a small pool of blood.  “See the spray pattern?  This person was wounded, and fell in this direction.”  She waved her hands toward the stone column.

“Which would be Rush’s blood,” Lucifer said to his partner.  “He did say he was shot in the arm and fell down by the entry.”

Chloe nodded.  “We can test the blood type, see if it matches.  What else do you see, Ella?”

She scanned the area, fanning out from the area of the blood spatters, until she reached the stairs.  “Shell casing,” she said, bending down and pointing to the metal cartridge on the floor.  She stood up and maneuvered around the floor, studying the evidence.  “I’d say... the guy who was shot is here --” she dragged Lucifer in front of the column, “-- and based on the shell casing location, the shooter is probably... here.”  She planted herself near the staircase.  “No, wait.  How tall did you say our suspect is?”

“We’re twinsies,” Lucifer said with a smile.  “Just think of both of us as wickedly handsome and interchangeable, for the moment.”

Chloe rolled her eyes as Ella grabbed his arm and pulled him closer to her.  “There...  That would give enough space for him to fall, with blood spattering as he goes down, then for a little blood to pool a bit as he lays there.”

The blonde detective studied her two associate’s positions.  “Well, if that’s the case, it seems doubtful that J. P. would have opened the door for Rush -- he would have had to open the door then back up to the staircase.”

“Rush did say the door was open,” chimed in the Devil.

Chloe ignored him.  “Okay, what else do you see?”

The lab tech turned to the body.  “Well....”  She took a few steps toward it, studying the blood spatters and the remnants of the coffee table.  She touched the metal frame scattered about the glass.  “This is a pretty sturdy frame.  It would take a lot of weight to break it into pieces like this.  And look at the size of these shards.  Pretty well broken up here, by his legs.  I think the victim was tackled.”

“Aha!” Lucifer said triumphantly to his partner, who just shook her head and covered her eyes.

A photographer came to snap photos as Ella studied the patterns of the glass shards and the position of the victim.  She pointed at the bloody left forearm, lying on the ground.  “Looks like his ulnar artery was severed in the fall.”  Reaching over, she slowly moved his right hand from his neck.  Tilting his head up, she said, “Oh wow, the carotid artery was completely severed by the glass.”  She scanned the ground.  “Look at these blood stains, and the pattern... he bled out like a fountain.”

The photographer took more photos of the blood and the victim as Ella stood up.  “We’d have to get an autopsy on this guy, but it looks to me like it could have been an accident -- the result of a fight.  Look at the patterns of the glass.  Looks like they fell in this trajectory.”  She waved her arm from the entry to the coffee table.

“Okay,” Chloe said as she studied the crime scene.  “Let’s say the door was open, and the suspect let himself in.  Unless the victim had the gun in hand, you wouldn’t expect him to shoot the suspect in the entry.  He’d have to get his gun, and by then the suspect would have moved further into the house....”

“But instead he got shot here,” Lucifer said as he pointed to the blood stain on the entry tile.

His partner nodded.  “So our victim probably already had the gun on him... was expecting him, which would make sense if he was texting Eve in order to goad Rush into coming.”

They both turned to Ella as she continued to scrutinize the crime scene.  “Looks like after the victim shot the suspect, he moved from the staircase,” the lab tech said.  “He had to cross the suspect to get to the living room.”

Chloe nodded.  “If Rush had broken in, at this point he would be recognized.  Harris is holding the gun on him, maybe telling him not to move...?”

“But Rush said Harris threatened him --” Lucifer said with a frown.  Was the detective trying to prove the man guilty?

“I know,” she said, holding up her hand to him.  “But we have to look at this from all angles.”  She glanced from the living room to the entry.  “If I was confronting someone breaking in, even if I recognized him, I wouldn’t get anywhere close to him.”

The fallen angel brightened.  “Rush said he kicked him in the knee!  He had to be close to do that.”

“If he recognized Rush and went to help him, he wouldn’t be standing over him.  He’d be kneeling beside him -- and there would be no reason for the fight in the living room.”  The blonde detective’s eyes narrowed.  “Unless Harris wanted to stand over him and gloat...?”

Ella nodded.  “That makes sense.  So our suspect kicks the victim in the knee, victim stumbles this direction -- toward the coffee table -- then the suspect tackles him, and they fall.  The victim lands on his left side, as he is now.  If he’s right-handed, the gun would be pointed away but could still be brought up to shoot the suspect.  Look at the bloody smears here.”  She pointed at red claw-like marks on the carpet.  “Probably the suspect, reaching for the gun.  If the victim was left-handed, he wouldn’t have been able to bring up the gun after being injured.  The suspect wouldn’t be in such a hurry to get the gun.”

“So now the suspect has the gun, and is pointing it at the victim.  Does he shoot him?” Chloe asked.

Ella turned back and inspected the body.  “I don’t see any bullet wounds.  Unless he shot at him and missed, and the bullet is lodged somewhere else... but no.  I don’t believe our suspect shot the victim.”

“So Harris died from the glass wounds.”  The blonde detective glanced at Lucifer.  “It seems to fit Rush’s version of things, with Manny taking the gun away before he fired.”

Lucifer stood a little straighter and lifted his chin triumphantly.  “Of course it fits, Detective.  I knew our boy hadn’t murdered anyone.”  His eyes darkened with anger.  “And if anyone was in need of punishment, it was this J. P. Harris character.  Too bad I’m no longer in Hell to oversee the bastard’s torture!”

Chloe smirked and shook her head.  “Sure, Lucifer.”  Turning back to Ella, she asked, “One last thing -- could the victim have lived if he got medical attention?”

She grimaced.  “Well, hard to say.  We’d have to do an autopsy for sure... but by the size of the pool of blood, it looks like he was bleeding out fast.  The carotid artery supplies blood to the brain.  If it’s completely severed, it wouldn’t take long before the brain doesn’t have enough oxygen to survive.  He would have died very quickly.”

“Well then, we need to get an autopsy done!” Lucifer announced happily.

“Dude, do you realize what time it is?” Ella scolded.  “The medical examiner won’t do an autopsy in the middle of the night!”

“Yes, he will,” the fallen angel said with a grin.

“Lucifer --” Chloe warned, but he waved her off as he pulled out his phone.

“Don’t worry, my dear.  Everything’s quite legal, I assure you....”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

Chloe wasn’t sure how Lucifer did it, but when they returned to the station, the medical examiner, Ralph Levine, was there, with his two assistants.  The older man glared at her, then shot a frosty glance at Lucifer before stalking to his lab to start his examination.  The blonde detective watched him go, impressed that her partner was able to convince the cranky man to do an autopsy in the middle of the night.  His skills of persuasion were quite impressive -- not that she’d ever let him know that!  His ego was already big enough.  Praising him would just make his head swell larger than it already was.

With a sigh, she grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hall.  “Come on, let’s go talk to Rush.”

After getting the tall man from the holding cell, Chloe led him and her partner to a small conference room where they could talk privately.

“We’ll know more in a few hours,” she told Rush without preamble, “but for now it seems like your story checks out.  We’ll need you to call Eve.  She can come in the morning and make a statement.  We’ll also need to see her phone for those texts she received from J. P. Harris.”

He looked up and nodded.  “I can call her now.  I know she won’t be sleeping tonight.  She didn’t sleep well the last time he... well....”

Chloe’s eyebrows shot up.  “Harris tried to rape her before?”

Rush’s expression was hard and unyielding.  “He was abusive in their relationship... very abusive.  He got her pregnant, and then... well, let’s just say he made it so that she wasn’t.  That was when I took her in.”

“Bloody hell, why didn’t she go to the police?” Lucifer asked, shocked.

He looked at the fallen angel, then glanced away.  “She was too ashamed, and didn’t want to relive it on the stand.  I never thought she’d run into him again.  I had hoped he had forgotten her.”  Rush waved his handcuffed hands.  “Can I borrow your phone?  I’ll call her.”

Half an hour later, Eve Parker was brought into the conference room by an officer.  She was a small, beautiful woman with a large, ugly bruise on her left cheek.  The injury made Chloe’s blood boil.  J. P. Harris was at least six feet tall, while Eve was a whole head shorter than him -- how dare he beat a small, defenseless woman?  Chloe’s heart immediately went out to the other woman, who glanced around like a frightened doe.

“Come in,” the detective said gently, and pulled out a chair for her.

Eve’s eyes widened as she caught sight of Rush.  “Why are you here?  You should be with Sarah --”  Then her eyes landed on Lucifer and she gasped.  “What the hell?!”

The blonde detective expected her partner to be suave and charming, but he surprised her -- his voice dropped to a gentle cadence as he smiled almost tenderly.  “Hello, my dear.  I’m Lucifer Morningstar.”  Chloe breathed a sigh of relief.  The last thing the frightened woman needed was Lucifer and his... Luciferness.

Eve gave a soggy chuckle.  “Like... like the Devil?”

“Precisely that.”  He gestured gallantly at the chair Chloe was holding out for her.  “Please, my dear.  Have a seat.”

The woman sat gingerly on the edge of the chair and glanced at the occupants in the room.  She looked ready to flee at any moment.  “Am... am I under arrest?”

Chloe shook her head.  “No.  We need a statement from you... about J. P. Harris.”  She waved at the handcuffed man.  “Rush says that Mr. Harris tried to rape you.  Is that true?”

Eve nodded, then touched her cheek self-consciously.  “He... he did this too.”  Her shoulders started to tremble violently as tears fell from her eyes.  “I was so afraid....  And then he started texting me.”

“Can we see those texts?” Chloe asked in a soft voice.

“Of course.”  Digging into her purse, she pulled out her phone.  “Here, take a look.”

Taking the device, Chloe was shocked to see the number of texts J. P. had sent Eve.  One every two minutes.... For hours.  “Oh, my god....”

“I doubt Dad had anything to do with that arsemonger,” Lucifer spat as he took the phone and looked at the screen.  “Bloody hell...!”  He handed the phone back to Eve.  “I’d say that’s enough to spur anyone to go see the tosser.”

“Look, if Rush is in trouble, it’s because of me,” the personal assistant said as she straightened and rubbed the tears from her cheeks.  “He wouldn’t have gone to see J. P. if he hadn’t seen the texts --”

“Eve,” Rush said, shaking his head slightly.  “Don’t.”

“But it’s true!  You shouldn’t even be here -- you should be on your way to Bora Bora right now with Sarah --”  She broke off, a look of horror crossing her face.  “Why aren’t you with Sarah?!”

“Ah, the illustrious Sarah,” Lucifer muttered.  Chloe shot him a dark look.

“Sarah and I... called it quits,” Rush said.

“It’s my fault, isn’t it?” Eve cried.  Turning to Chloe, she said, “Look -- he’s done nothing wrong!  It’s all my fault!  I shot J. P. -- I wanted him dead!”

Rush grimaced.  “Eve, stop --”

She whirled and glared at him.  “Did you tell Sarah about J. P. harassing me?”  At his silence, she cried, “You have to tell her!”

The tall man shook his head.  “I‘d just drag her down into the mud, Eve.  I can’t do that to her.”

“But -- but you made all these changes!  You were trying so hard!”

“I know.”  He looked at his assistant with sad eyes.  “Just... drop it, Eve.”

Sighing, Chloe tapped Eve’s shoulder.  “Can I speak to you outside?”

When they walked out to the hall together, the blonde detective turned to the small woman and said, “Look, we’ll need you to make a statement, and we’ll need a copy of those texts.  Would you like to do that now, or tomorrow morning?  This can wait until you feel up to it....”

Chloe could feel the anxiety coming off Eve in waves as the other woman clutched her handbag.  “I can do it now -- I want to help Rush.  How much trouble is he in?”

“I’ll be able to tell you better when the autopsy is finished.”

“And when will that be?”

“A few hours,” Lucifer said as he stepped out into the hall with them.  “Don’t worry, my dear.  We’re working around the clock for Rush.  In the meantime, I was wondering if you might do me a favor...?”

The small woman looked up at him, her eyes dewy with tears.  “What do you want me to do?”

“Lucifer --” Chloe warned.

He glanced at her with a look that didn’t reassure her at all.  Turning back to the other woman, the Devil asked, “Can you get in touch with this Sarah?  She should know what has happened.”

Eve nodded vigorously.  “I can do that.  Rush can get hardheaded when he’s trying to protect someone.  He’s like that, you know.”

“I can believe it.”  Lucifer gave her a heart-melting smile while Chloe rolled her eyes.  “Thank you, my dear.”

“Come on, Eve, I’ll take your statement,” she said as she led the woman down the hall.  “And if you’d like to talk about J. P. and the attempted rape, I’m a good listener.”

 

 

________________________________________

  


The autopsy report was done in two hours, which surprised Chloe.  It must have been an all-time record for the cranky medical examiner.  She had never seen him take anything less than half a day for an autopsy.  Sometimes he took all week!  Apparently Lucifer had worked some real magic with the man.

“Cause of death was lack of oxygen to the brain due to the complete severing of the carotid artery,” Levine said, handing the file to the blonde detective.  “His ulnar artery in his left forearm had also been severed by glass, and he had a shallow bullet wound to the chest, approximately a day old, by the looks of the tissue.  There was severe bruising to his left knee, indicating trauma, and multiple lacerations on the body.  The victim had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy --”

“What is that?” Chloe asked.  Levine looked at her as if she was an idiot.

“The thickening of the heart muscle, which reduces the size of the chamber of the heart,” he said condescendingly.  “The victim also had atherosclerosis -- plaques on his artery walls.”

“What does this all mean?”

Levine rolled his eyes.  “It means, Detective Decker, that your victim had high blood pressure, which would have exacerbated the bleeding from his neck.  Once his carotid artery was severed, he was a dead man.  And now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going home to sleep!”

Although she bristled at the medical examiner’s attitude, she thanked him for his time, then went to the conference room where Lucifer, Eve, and Rush waited.

“It looks like we’ll be dropping the murder charges,” she announced after telling them of Levine’s findings.  “I have to double-check with Lieutenant Monroe and the district attorney in the morning, but I doubt there’s enough evidence to press charges.  J. P. Harris’s death appears to have been an accident.”

Lucifer grinned.  “I knew my doppelganger wouldn’t have anything to do with a murder.”

“Isn’t that great, Rush?” Eve said, giving him a hug as Chloe took off his handcuffs.

He did not look relieved.  “But... but....  That can’t be right.”

The blonde detective lifted an eyebrow at the man.  “I would have thought you’d be happy.”

“I am, but...”  He averted his eyes and hunched his shoulders.  “I have a confession to make.”

Both Chloe and Lucifer stared at him with surprise.  “What could you possibly confess?” the Devil asked.  “It was an accident.”

Rush looked up at them all, his face haunted.  “I... I should have helped him.  He was lying there, and I should have helped him... but I didn’t.  I let him die.”  He cradled his head in his hands.  “I’m a doctor.  I should have helped him, but I just... couldn’t.  Not after what he did to Eve.”

The blonde detective knelt beside the seated man and took a gentle hold of his wrist.  “Look.  The coroner told me that Harris had high blood pressure, and that as soon as his neck got cut, no one could have saved him.  Even if you had jumped in there, he would have died.”

Rush turned to look at her, his dark eyes tortured.  “I’m a doctor.  I should have tried, but I was so damned mad....”

“He tried to rape Eve.  He tried to kill you.  He got what he deserved,” she said softly.  “Stop beating yourself up.”

“Yes, please do,” Lucifer added, his eyes glinting.  “Taking away Eve’s free will while having his way with her is a crime of the highest degree.  He deserves burning in the hottest fires of Hell.”

Chloe smiled at her partner, then gave Rush’s arm a squeeze.  “I’ll get the paperwork going.  You’ll have to stay in the holding cell tonight, but if all goes well, you can post bail by noon tomorrow.  I’ll talk to the DA about your drug possession charges, as well....  It might be considered a ‘wobble’ offense, which would just mean parole.”

“Can you also help Manny?” Rush asked.  “He did try to help by taking the gun away from me.”

“I think so.  He stopped you from shooting Harris.  I’ll talk to the DA -- tell him that Manny had done you and everyone a favor by taking that gun.”

The doctor gave the detective a long look, his eyes tender.  “Thank you,” he said, then lifted his eyes to the fallen angel.  “Both of you.”

“Oh, it’s a little too early to thank me, don’t you agree?” Lucifer said with a grin.  “We still have to get you back together with your Sarah, although I’d say cleaning up your life isn’t much of a challenge so far.”

Rush shook his head, his dark eyes somber.  “Oh, you haven’t even gotten to the worst thing yet....”

Lucifer lifted an eyebrow.  “There’s something worse than being accused of murder?”

The doctor nodded as his shoulders slumped.  “Oh yes....”

 

 


	3. Meeting with Sarah

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my beta, ScooterThyme! Your hard work makes my work shine!

 

 

Patience was not Lucifer’s strong suit.

As he paced outside the precinct, staring up at the early afternoon sun, Lucifer considered finding and pestering Chloe while he waited for Rush to get released.  It was taking forever for the doctor to get processed.  Scowling, the Devil realized with disgust that even his famous charm couldn’t hurry bureaucracy along.  It was worse than Hell -- at least there he had minions to do his bidding.  Here... here was just bloody boring paperwork.  Mountains of it.

“Thanks for bailing me out.”

Upon hearing Rush’s voice, the Devil brightened and turned to meet the doctor.

“Ah, there you are.   _Finally.”_  Lucifer took stock of his double, looking rumpled in his light grey suit, his short cropped hair askew, and his five o’clock shadow now looking more like eight o’clock.  The human definitely needed some freshening up.  Taking a hold of Rush’s arm, he steered him toward the Corvette parked in the red zone.

“Shit, is this your ride?” Rush said with a grin as he marveled at the classic convertible.  Lucifer glowed with pride at the man’s admiration.

“Oh yes, 1962, in top condition.”

“Nice!  I have a Mercedes convertible, myself --”

Lucifer turned at that, grinning at his double.  “Do you indeed?  Splendid!  We must talk cars sometime.  Here -- hop in, hop in.”  As he started the engine, the fallen angel asked, “Where can I take you?”

“Maison Cresson.”

“Ah, Beverly Hills.”

“You got it, man.  Got a suite there.”

They drove in silence for a while, before Rush finally groaned and rubbed his eyes.  “I don’t suppose you have anything to... uh... you know, take the edge off?”

Lucifer raised an eyebrow.  “Like?”

“Uh....  Blow?”

His eyes lit up even as regret touched his features.  “I do, actually.  Quite a bit... but the detective made me promise to keep you clean until your arraignment three days hence.  I’m very sorry but I cannot accommodate you.”

The doctor slanted him a glance.  “You always do what she tells you to do?”

“In this case, yes.  My word is my bond.”  He glanced over at Rush, who was smirking.  “What?”

“Man, you must really love her.  You are so cool whipped.”

His brow furrowed.  “What does a disgusting manufactured alternative to whipped cream have to do with anything?”

The doctor burst out laughing.  “Oh come on, you don’t know?  Cool whipped is the more extreme version of being whipped.  It means you’re so in love with your girl that you’ll do anything she asks.”

Lucifer was appalled.  Rush thought he was cool whipped?   _Him?_  The Devil?!  Certainly not!  He opened his mouth to respond to Rush’s claim, but found himself speechless as all manner of thoughts raced through his head.   _Was_ he in love with Chloe?  He knew nothing of the affairs of the heart, and yet... the thought of the detective made his insides warm and happy.  It was definitely... odd.  Perhaps it was indigestion?  Yes, yes. Surely, that was it.

“I have no bloody idea what you’re talking about,” he groused.  “Why don’t you tell me what’s worse than a murder charge?”

Rush squirmed in his seat and looked out at the passing scenery.  “It’s... complicated.”

“Enlighten me.”

The doctor shook his head.  “It’s... ugly family stuff.  Look, Sarah wanted a stable home life, so I tried to get a job at the hospital.  My dad told them not to hire me --”

“Your _dad_ told them not to hire you?!”  The fallen angel felt his blood boil at the thought of another father who enjoyed torturing his own son.   _“Your dad?”_

Rush snorted.  “Yeah.  Said he had to think about what was good for the hospital.”

 _“Dads._  Bloody bastards, the lot of them,” the Devil snarled.

“Tell me about it.  But I called him and begged him to reconsider.  He finally agreed --”

“He agreed...?”  A tightening around Lucifer’s ribs had him sucking in his breath through his teeth.  What was this odd feeling that he felt?  He wished... he wished _his_ dad had reconsidered kicking him out of Heaven straight into Hell.  Gripping the steering wheel tightly, he tried to calm the frustration suddenly welling inside him.  He didn’t care that a human had a better father than he did.  No, he didn’t care.  Not at all.

“So he was going to call Emily Chase yesterday to let her know it was okay to hire me, but now, with the drug possession charge...  Well, that’s all blown to hell.”  Rush ran his hand over his face.  “Damn.  I really could use some blow.  Or pills.  Anything.”

Lucifer shot a glance at his passenger.  “I could call the hospital and get you hired.  Many people owe me favors.”

“No.  Thanks, but... no,” the doctor said with a rueful smile.  “Once Dad gets wind of what happened -- and he _will_ get wind of it -- I’ll be blacklisted from ever working in a hospital again.”  His voice took on a bitter edge.  “I’ll have to keep on with my private practice of personalized medicine, providing discreet services to the rich and famous.”

“Right.”  The fallen angel cocked his head at Rush.  “And you consider this bad...?”

“Nah, not really.  I’ve been doing it ever since I got kicked out of the hospital.  It’s just that... stability would have been nice.”

“You were kicked out...?”

Rush nodded as he studied his hands.  “Six years ago -- not my finest moment.  Dad ruled the hospital with an iron fist.  I was chafing under him, so I did something incredibly stupid.”

“Ah, rebellion,” Lucifer said with a knowing look and a nod.

“Yeah, you could say that.  I screwed up royally so Dad kicked me out, saying he wanted to teach me a lesson.”

 _Six years...._  Lucifer blinked at the coincidence.  That was when he had tired of Hell and come to Earth.  How odd that both their lives changed drastically six years ago.  Had dear old Dad planned for William Rush to cross his path?  Was it by his design that they both had so much in common?  Their looks, their mutual love of cocaine, their extreme wealth, their convertibles, their dads being the controlling wankers that they were....

It was too weird to think about, so Lucifer decided not to.  “Your dad sounds like a bloody bastard.”

Rush laughed bitterly.  “Oh, he is.  There isn’t a bigger ass than my father, believe me.”

The Devil thought that his own father was a much bigger arse.  “I have my doubts about that.  So... why is your private practice a problem?”

“Oh it’s not -- I’m used to being on call at all hours -- but it’s not what Sarah wanted.”

Ah.  Sarah, the paragon.

“She’s my... everything,” Rush continued.

“Right.”  Lucifer’s brow furrowed.  “But... what about what you want?  What you desire?”

Rush leaned against the headrest and closed his eyes.  “I want whatever Sarah wants... because I love her.”

“I see,” the fallen angel said, even though he really didn’t.  Love was such a foreign concept to him.  It seemed so odd that humans would give up everything they desired for one another, all in the name of love.  And yet, when he thought about it... wouldn’t he do that for Chloe?  He had died for her, after all....  The thoughts spinning around in his brain gave him a blinding headache -- a new experience for him.

The rest of the drive was made in silence.

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

As the two men walked into the hotel, Rush suddenly stopped dead in the middle of the hall and stared at the bar.  Lucifer looked to see what had caught Rush’s attention, but saw no one except a young African-American gentleman drinking heavily.  The doctor broke way, running halfway to the bar, before hurrying back to him.

“Listen, why don’t you go on up to the room?  Eve should be there -- just walk in.”  Rush shot another look at the drinking man.  “I’ll be right up.  Take this up for me, will you?”  He shoved his bag at Lucifer.

For a moment the fallen angel rebelled at the request -- he was the Devil, not some bloody hotel porter!  But... well, he _was_ going up so that he could untangle Rush’s life.  That was the deal, after all.  Sighing heavily, he wondered when he had become such a pushover.

“Very well,” Lucifer said as he took the bag and held it like a disgusting bug.  Taking the elevator up several floors, he strode down the hall and opened the door to Rush’s suite.

“Eve?” he called out as he walked in.  As he set the bag by the door and went through the entry hall into the living room area, he saw her sitting on the couch with another woman -- a pretty brunette.  Oooh, two women!  He gave them both his best smile.  “Hello, ladies!”

The brunette rose to her feet.  Before he knew what was happening, she planted herself before him and slapped him hard across the face.  He merely blinked at the blow, for it hadn’t hurt.  He was mortal only when Chloe was around -- which wasn’t a bad thing, when he thought about it.  Wondrous visions of bondage and pain and -- well, sex -- with the detective filled him with burning excitement, and he grinned.  Ooooh, he’d love to have her handcuff him and have her wicked way with him!

“You think this is funny?”  The brunette slapped him a second time.

The fallen angel blinked again.  In the midst of his daydream, he had forgotten where he was.  He focused on the spitfire before him.  “Ah... and... you are?”

“Don’t give me that, Rush!  You are such a piece of shit!”  The woman pummeled his chest with her fists.

“Sarah, no!  That’s not --”  Eve cried as she took a good look at Lucifer and stood up.

“You coward!  Why didn’t you tell me what had happened with Eve?”  The woman continued to hit and shove him.  “Sack of shit!”

Lucifer looked helplessly from Rush’s assistant to the harridan in his arms.  “Ah... right.  You must be Sarah.”  He had never been the target of undeserved punishment before, unless it was from his own family.  From humans?  Never!  Playful blows, yes.  A little torture, sure!  But this was new to him.

“Who else would I be?!” Sarah yelled as the other woman rushed over and tried to restrain her.

“Sarah, stop!  That’s not --”

Just then, Rush entered the suite, with his arm around the gentleman from the bar.  Lucifer breathed a sigh of relief, then lifted a brow as the drunk man looked at him and said, “Hey, Rush!  I see two of you!”

“Yes you do, buddy. Come on, you need to lie down and sleep this off.  It’s too early in the day to be smashed.”  The doctor helped the newcomer to the couch and laid him down.  Meanwhile Sarah stared at Lucifer, then Rush, then back again.

“What... what the hell?!”

“I was trying to tell you,” Eve said as she pulled the brunette away from the fallen angel.  “That’s not Rush.  That’s Lucifer Morningstar.”

“Lucifer Morningstar?” Sarah scoffed.  “As in the Devil?”

“Exactly,” Lucifer said with a charming smile.  “Rush asked me to straighten out his life.  I’m here on his behalf.”

For a moment she stared at him, dazzled, before her face took on the angry cast once again.  “Yeah, right.”  She snorted, then turned to the doctor.  “You made a deal with the Devil?  You’ve really lost it, Rush.”

“He’s not the Devil --”

“Oh but I am!” the fallen angel chimed in.

Rolling his eyes, Rush kept talking.  “He’s just an eccentric guy, but he _is_ helping me.”  He turned to look at Lucifer.  “Right?”

Lucifer merely grinned.  Ahh, humans -- they never believed.  He took a step toward Sarah.  “My dear, it’s such a pleasure to meet you.  Tell me -- what is it you desire?”

The brunette’s face went slack as her eyes glazed over.  “What?”

“What is it you desire?”  He began to apply his charm.  “Come on, Sarah.  You can tell me.  What do you most desire, more than anything?”

“I....”

“Hey, what are you doing to her?” Rush asked, a flutter of panic in his voice, but Lucifer merely held up his index finger to him and kept pressing with his unearthly charisma.

“Come on.  You can tell me!  What is it you really want?”

“I want... to be cancer-free.”

Lucifer drew back.  “Oh.”  Well, that wasn’t what he had expected to hear.  Living cancer-free was an important desire, true, but surely she wanted something more... carnal?

The doctor gaped at him in surprise.  “She’s... going into surgery next week.  Why would she tell you...?”

Glaring at Rush until he fell into silence, the fallen angel turned back to Sarah.  Biting his lower lip, he tried again as he looked deep into her eyes and tried to pull out a more lustful yearning from her.  “But there must be something else?  Something closer to your heart that you desire?”

“I want....”

“Yes?” he said with a grin.  Surely if Rush loved the woman as much as he did, she would say she wanted him, too?

“I want a baby.”

“Oh bloody hell, no!” he cried, recoiling.  His stomach lurched at the idea of a child.  “Not a... little spawn!”

“Oh yes.”  Her eyes grew dreamy.  “With Rush.  I want Rush to be the dad.”

Lucifer thought he was going to be sick.  Humans and their need to make monstrous little spawn -- it was appalling!  But... well, at least he was making progress with what Sarah wanted?  He could work with this -- maybe.  If he didn’t vomit first.  Swallowing hard, he struggled to regain his composure.  “Right.  Well, why can’t you?  I mean, surely if you two love each other --”

“Because he doesn’t trust me!” she suddenly yelled, snapping out of the trance.  “If he did he would have told me about J. P.!”

Rush looked distressed.  “I didn’t want to drag you into the mud --”

She spun on him, practically spitting with rage.  “That’s a coward’s excuse, Will!  You always run away when things get real!”

Lucifer sighed heavily and rolled his eyes as the bickering began to escalate. _Why_ had he agreed to this?  “Sarah, Rush, please stop!”

As they both looked at him, Eve announced, “Rush, I’m going to pick up your car from the impound yard,” and hurriedly made her escape out the door.

Trying to be diplomatic -- damn it all, ordering demons about was so much easier! -- the Devil said, “Sarah, please.  Sit down.  You too, Rush.”  He gestured to the couch that the drunkard wasn’t lying on.  As he watched them eye each other warily, he took a seat in the armchair and sighed.  He had plenty of sessions with Doctor Linda -- surely he could channel her and get everything fixed for Rush?  One never knew when a doctor would come in handy, especially when the detective made him mortal....

“Right.  Now then, Sarah... Rush tells me that he loves you very much.  All he wants is what you want.”  That sounded like Doctor Linda, didn’t it?  He continued.  “And Rush, Sarah wants you to be the father of her... ugh... child.  So why aren’t you two together?”

“Because he didn’t tell me about the problems with Eve,” she snarled.

Rush spread his arms wide.  “I didn’t want to ruin your life!”

“We have to talk to each other, if we want a real relationship!  Goddamn it, Will, you _know_ that!”

Bloody hell, they were yelling again!  Lucifer rubbed his temples and squeezed his eyes shut.  If he just smashed the two humans’ faces together and forced them to kiss, would that count as fixing Rush’s life?  For _this_ confrontation was certainly more horrifying than facing a murder charge.

Rush was speaking again.  Lucifer struggled to pay attention.  “I know, Sarah. But....”

“Damn it, you won’t ruin my life.  Why don’t you get it?”  She shook her fists in the air.  “I’ve seen the changes you’ve been making.  I know you want this to work!  Why can’t you see that I want it to work as well?”

“But I’ve done things --”

“You tried to protect Eve!  Did you really think I wouldn’t understand?  That’s a noble thing you did.  Why would you think that would drag me down into the mud?”

“I killed a man, and I was arrested on possession of drugs,” he said with shame as he looked away.

“Eve told me it was found to be an accidental death.”  Sarah turned his face toward her.  “And I know you do drugs, Will.  I’ve always known.  I also know that you got rid of them once I moved in.  One day they were here, the next they were gone, and I’m proud of you for that.  I know you’re trying.  I’m not going to hold the arrest against you, as long as you stay clean from now on.  My baby doesn’t need a drug addict for a father.”

Cocking his head, Lucifer studied the couple.  He thought things were going well, although Rush’s eyes seemed overbright, as did Sarah’s.  Bloody hell, were they going to cry?  And why should they be crying, if Sarah was proud of Rush?  Humans were so odd.  Oh well.  He was confident they would work things out now.  And all he had had to do was get the two in the same room together, sit back, and let them figure everything out themselves!  So easy!

“I won’t be able to work in any hospital again,” the doctor said worriedly.  “Work will always be... at all hours.”

She shook her head.  “I don’t care.  We can make a life around it.  Nothing is insurmountable, as long as we have each other.”

“You’re so strong,” Rush said as he brought his hands up to caress her face.  “God, I love you.”

“You love Dad?  I thought you loved Sarah,” Lucifer said, puzzled.

Smiling back at Rush, Sarah said, “I love you too.”

And then the two humans kissed.  Bloody hell, this psychotherapy business was _easy!_  Lucifer sat up straight, quite happy with his accomplishment.  Doctor Linda would be so proud of him!  Now that Rush’s life was all straightened out, he could go home with a favor under his belt....

But then the doctor pulled away.  “No.  No, we can’t....”

“Why not?”

Lucifer threw up his hands as he rolled his eyes.  Oh, bloody hell.  What _now?!_

“There’s... there’s something else you don’t know.”

 _Uh oh._  Lucifer’s stomach dropped to his knees.

“I... I don’t know how to tell you,” Rush continued.

“Just tell me,” said Sarah.

The doctor looked down at his hands twisting nervously in his lap.  “You’ll... you’ll hate me.”

“We love each other.  We can work through anything.”

“Okay.  Okay.”  He nodded to himself, then took a deep breath.  “I... I slept with my stepmother.”

Lucifer’s jaw dropped as the room grew deathly silent.  Well, that was certainly an effective way for Rush to stick it to his dad!  He suddenly found himself smiling as a swell of pride for his doppelganger swamped his insides.   _Well done, Rush!_

Sarah gasped and her jaw dropped as well, although her reaction wasn’t quite as positive.  “What?”

Rush grimaced.  “It was a mistake, I know.  It happened months ago, before we got back together.  I went to see Dad to ask him for a favor for --” he waved at the sleeping drunk on the other couch, “-- for Alex.  Anyway, I met Corrine for the first time there.  She asked me out to lunch the next day.  I tried to say no, but she said we were family, so I went.  Later that evening I stopped by the house to thank Dad for helping Alex.  Corrine told me that she was the one who had convinced Dad to make the call, that he wanted me to twist in the wind.  She was... angry.  Bitter.  Said that Dad shouldn’t always get what he wants.  And then... then she... she came onto me.”

“Oh, my god....”  Sarah’s face twisted in anger.  “And you had to take what she was offering? You had to go there?!”

Lucifer winced at the mention of Dad.  “Please, can we refrain from the Dad references?”  The two humans ignored him.

“I know.  I’m sorry... I was hurt that Dad was going to let Alex hang because of me, and... and I wasn’t thinking.  I tried to stop, but....”  He cradled his head in his hands.  “I was an idiot.”

“You _are_ an idiot!” she yelled at him.  “For god’s sake, Will!  What were you thinking?!”

The fallen angel tried to follow along in the argument, but found it quite confusing.  Running through the facts he had just heard, he couldn’t understand the problem.  Massaging the back of his neck, he tried to get the humans’ attention.  “Wait -- why is this bad?”

They continued to ignore him.

“Sarah -- “

“Don’t ‘Sarah’ me, you stupid --”

“Excuse me,” Lucifer finally interrupted, quite baffled.  “Why are you mad at Rush?”

Sarah gaped at the fallen angel.  “What?”

“Why are you mad at him?  He said it happened before he got back together with you.  So why are you so angry?”

“Because he slept with his _stepmother!”_

Lucifer nodded.  “Right.  I understand that.  But he’d never met her before, and she’s not blood related.  It’s not like the prat slept with his _own_ mother.”  He shuddered at the thought.

Sarah glared at him.  “You... _men!_  How can you condone what he did?”

“I just... don’t understand.  Please explain to me exactly what he’s done wrong, so that I can punish him.”

“Wait, what?” Rush cried.  “Punish...?!”

Lucifer looked the doctor up and down.  “If you’ve done something wrong, you need to be punished.  I’m the Devil -- that’s my jam.”  Turning back to the woman, he repeated, “So tell me -- what has he done wrong?  Are you angry that he slept with another woman before you got together?”

Sarah paused, her face frozen, before shaking her head.  “No.  I never expected Rush to be celibate while we were apart.  After all, I was with another guy.”

“So then... why are you angry?”

“Are you stupid?  Because it was his stepmother!”

“But there is no blood relation --”

“He was thinking with his dick!” she snarled.

Lucifer stared at her in surprise.  “Bloody hell, what’s wrong with thinking with his tackle?  I don’t believe that’s ever been a crime, although it can lead one into trouble.” He broke into a grin.  “Then again, sex is _always_ worth the trouble --”

Sarah screamed, “It was his _stepmother!_  Warren’s going to be so hurt!”

“Warren?”  Lucifer’s brows drew together.  Bloody hell, who was this Warren fellow?

As if reading the fallen angel’s mind, Rush said, “That’s my dad.”

That made even less sense.  “Truly, I don’t understand you humans at all.  From what I’ve gathered, Rush’s father is a bastard.  He hardly seems like someone who demands sympathy, and yet you are more concerned for him than Rush?  Rush, whom you claim you love?” Lucifer said.  “You just said nothing is insurmountable, as long as you have each other.  Were you lying?”

Sarah opened her mouth to respond, then shut it again as her shoulders slumped.  “No.  No, I wasn’t.”  She turned to Rush.  “I’m sorry.  I _do_ love you.  It’s just... such a disappointment.”

The doctor glanced at Lucifer, then took Sarah’s hand in his.  “Look, I’m human.  I make mistakes.  I know what I did wrong and I’m sorry, but I can’t change it now.  That’s why I tried to let you go. I don’t want to drag you into the mud.”  Taking a deep breath, he said, “You should just go back to your life and forget about me.  I’ll end up destroying you.”

For a long moment she stared at him, then shook her head.  “No.  I’m not abandoning you, Will.  I know deep inside that you’re a good man, albeit a somewhat idiotic one.  It will take me time to get over this, but... we’ll deal with it.”  Reaching out, she caressed his stubble-lined cheek.  “We’re stronger together.  We’ll face this as a couple.”

 _Yes!_  Lucifer wanted to jump up and start dancing.  Rising out of the armchair, he congratulated himself on a job well done.  Now he could go home and leave this miserable suite full of incomprehensible emotions and yelling and --

“But you don’t know everything,” Rush told Sarah.

A sinking feeling accosted Lucifer’s stomach, and he slowly lowered himself back into his chair.

She shook her head.  “I don’t need to know everything.”

Rush squeezed the hand stroking his cheek before giving it back to her.  “Yes,” he said, his eyes intense.  “You do.”

Chills raced up and down Lucifer’s spine.  Whatever Rush was about to divulge sounded bad.  Bloody hell, what could be worse than sleeping with his stepmother?

“What is it?” Sarah asked.

Rush stood and walked to the sliding glass door.  His posture sagged and he hunched his shoulders as he gazed out at the haze resting over the city.  In a cracked voice, he said, “I got her pregnant.”

 

 


	4. Telling the Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my excellent beta, ScooterThyme -- you totally rock!!

 

 

Considering all the shocks that Sarah had gotten, Will Rush thought his girlfriend had taken the news of him impregnating his stepmother rather well.  Yes, there was a multitude of curses -- colorful enough to turn even  _ his _ face bright red -- vehement objections, and she did slap him quite a few times, but in the end she had accepted the news.

“You have to tell Warren,” she finally said.  “I don’t want that woman holding your affair and her baby over your head.  You  _ will _ tell your father, so that we can get this out in the open and deal with it.”

And that’s how Rush found himself sitting in the passenger seat of the Corvette, as Lucifer drove them to Brentwood... to see Warren Rush.

The doctor slid a glance at the man who claimed to be the Devil.  Oddly enough, his double didn’t seem phased by the fact that he had slept with his stepmother, which was a bit shocking.  Lucifer had merely smiled and said, “My dear Rush, there is nothing wrong with sex.  Dear old Dad was the one who gifted you humans with free will -- who am I to say who you should or shouldn’t sleep with?”

“You humans” was an odd thing for him to say, but perhaps the man was just a really easy-going method actor preparing for a part, or one insane individual...?  Either way, Rush was very glad that Lucifer was helping him.  He highly doubted he would have been released by the police as soon as he had been, if not for his strange double and Detective Decker.  And Lucifer’s weird hypnotic power had helped with Sarah, too -- gotten things out in the open so that they could talk.  He was so thankful that the love of his life still wanted to be with him -- despite everything.

Rush pulled the jeweler’s box from his jacket pocket and took a peek at the engagement ring inside.  It had cost a small fortune, but Sarah was worth it.  He desperately wanted to be with her, to have a life with everything resolved.  For once he didn’t want to screw everything up.  He really wanted his happily-ever-after.

“A ring,” Lucifer said, breaking into Rush’s thoughts.  “Thinking of proposing to your Sarah?”

He nodded with a soft smile.  “Yeah.  I still can’t believe that she’s going to stick by me after all of this.  She’s amazing.”

“Indeed.”

“I just hope we can get all this worked out with Dad and Corrine.  Frankly, I’m not sure how.  Dad can be... ruthless.”

A harsh chuckle spewed from Lucifer’s lips.  “I know the type.”

Rush turned in his seat to look at him better.  “Did you know he never told my half-sister about me?  He introduced me to her as a friend of his, instead of her brother.”  Anger burned through him, tinting his voice with bitterness.  “Sometimes I think he wishes I’d never been born.  Hell, most of the time he acts like I’m something dirty he has to sweep under the rug, unless his rich friend is in trouble with something illicit and needs help.  Then guess who Dad calls?”  His fist shot out and struck the passenger door.  “Shit.”

“Your father sounds remarkably similar to mine.  A bloody bastard.”

“Yeah, he can be.  I had hoped we could finally get to a better place, but... well, that’s all shot to hell now.”  He pressed the heels of his palms to his eyes as despair flooded him.  He had blown any chance of reconciliation with his father, for Corrine and the baby would be a constant reminder of what he had done.

“This is just the last nail in the coffin,” he said as he lowered his hands and glanced out at the passing scenery.  “He’ll think I’m a screw-up forever.”

“So what?”  Lucifer’s words had Rush staring at him in surprise.  “He’s a bastard, like my dad, and fathers such as ours don’t forgive, or forget,” he said before he lifted his chin and gave Rush a grin.  “Bloody hell, man, just give him the bird.  You don’t need his approval.  Be your own man!  Do whatever you desire, for you have free will -- that’s a luxury some of us don’t have.”

They drove in silence for a while as Rush considered his double’s words and thought about his past.  When his mother had been alive, he had been happy.  He had blossomed under the love and care she showered upon him, but after she died of cancer, his world splintered apart.  He missed her so badly, but the only one who had been there was his father -- cold, distant, and demanding.  Desperate to feel that warmth and love that he once felt with his mother, his ten-year-old self had struggled to please his father.

_ “Don’t disappoint me, Will.” _

_ “An ‘A’ isn’t good enough, Will.  You have to be the top of your class.” _

_ “You have to try harder, Will.  Why can’t you apply yourself?” _

Rush winced as memories of his father washed over him.  It still hurt, even after all this time.  Once in college, he started taking drugs to stay awake as he studied, and it had the wondrous side effect of numbing him to his father’s contempt.  Only it didn’t solve the problem -- it just made things worse.  It didn’t matter to Warren Rush that his son was the most brilliant doctor in Southern California.  The only thing that man could see now was that Rush was a drug addict.

But Lucifer was right -- why should he care?  He had tried his whole life to make his father happy.  He had to face the fact that his father was a bastard and would never care about him as his mother had.

Besides, now he had Sarah.  Strong, caring Sarah, who could give him the love that he wanted so desperately in his life.   Rush nodded to himself.  As long as he had her, his father’s opinions would cease to matter.  He just had to prove to her that he could be the man she wanted him to be -- that he could pull himself out of the mud.  She had told him that whenever things got real, he ran.  Well, he wasn’t going to run anymore.

Still, a part of him wanted to try one last escape route before committing to the dreaded showdown ahead.  Turning to Lucifer, he asked, “Hey, I don’t suppose we can tell Dad that you were the one who had sex with Corrine?”

That man shot him an amused look.  “And you think that would solve your problems?”

“Well... it would make things easier.”

A sardonic laugh burst out of Lucifer.  “Right.  As much as I wish I could help you, I have no intention of taking responsibility for a bloody little spawn that I did not co-create.  The thought of making a little human is absolutely abhorrent to me.

“Oh, don’t get me wrong --  _ all _ sex is fantastic,” he said with a wink.  “But a little spawn running about?”  He shuddered before sliding a glance at Rush.  “Besides, it would be a lie -- and I do not lie.”

“Ever?”

“Ever.  Point of pride, my dear doppelganger.”  He pulled the car into a driveway.  “And I believe this is it...?”

Rush glanced at the large, imposing house and swallowed hard.  He really did not want to be here.  Maybe they could just go back and try this another day...?  But Lucifer had already gotten out of the Corvette and was striding up the walkway.  Not wanting to be left behind -- although it was tempting to leave the man there and take off running -- Rush got out of the car and hurried to catch up.

Walking up to the porch, he turned to his companion as he rung the doorbell and said, “Just follow my lead, okay?”  Lucifer merely shrugged.

After a few minutes, Warren Rush opened the door.  Rush saw the surprise on his father’s face as he took in the sight of his son while Lucifer looked off in the distance, his back to the door.  “Will?  What are you doing here?”

He tried to smile.  “Hey, Dad, sorry to interrupt your Saturday.”

Lucifer turned and gave the older man a huge, somewhat wicked grin.  “Well, I get to meet the father at last!  Hello, Daddy Rush.”

Warren gaped at the fallen angel, then back at Rush, who quickly made introductions.

“Dad, this is Lucifer Morningstar.  Lucifer, this is my dad, Warren Rush.”

“The resemblance you bear to my son is... amazing,” the older man said.

Lucifer smirked.  “Well, you certainly don’t look like  _ my _ dad.  I wondered if you would, seeing as how your son and I could be twins -- although I have a finer taste in clothes, and far better hair.”  He ran a critical eye over Warren’s casual clothes.  “My, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.  Was there a sale at Goodwill?”

Rush rubbed his forehead.  “Lucifer, please.”  He turned back to his father.  “Look, Dad --”

The sound of a woman’s voice interrupted them.  “Honey, who is it?”  And then  _ she _ walked up.  Corrine.

It had only been a few months since Rush had had sex with her, so she didn’t look pregnant -- yet. Just a tiny bump that was barely noticeable, but he saw it and grimaced.  The young, statuesque blonde woman studied him with somewhat nervous eyes before noticing Lucifer.  Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened as she stared at him, then back at Rush.

“Who -- how --”

Before Rush could reply, Lucifer stepped in front of him, giving Corrine an appraising look before smiling at her charmingly.  “Hello, my dear.  You must be Corrine.  I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“I -- you -- Will...?!”

“Oh forgive me -- Lucifer Morningstar, at your service.  Rush and I seem to bear an uncanny resemblance to each other, wouldn’t you agree?”

Dazed, she nodded.  “Uh huh.”

“Might we come in for a spell?” he asked, glancing at both Corrine and Warren.  Shock coursed through Rush when both of them moved aside without any protest at all.  Lucifer’s weird charm certainly was effective!

“Is Lilly here, as well?” Rush asked as they entered the house.

“No, she’s at her friend’s house today,” Corrine answered.

“Okay.”  Well, that was good.  His half-sister wouldn’t have to listen to the yelling and shouting that was sure to come.  Rush looked at his father as they walked toward the dining room.  “Dad, can I talk to you for a bit?”

The older man frowned.  “This sounds serious.”

“It is.”

Corrine turned at Rush’s words, her face pale, and tittered nervously.  “Will, we really are quite busy today.  Maybe you can come back some other time?”

Oh, that was tempting.  He really wanted to take that offer -- to keep putting off this stupid meeting with his dad forever until it just went away.  But that was a pipe dream... and if he wanted Sarah, he had to face reality head on.

He opened his mouth to answer when suddenly Lucifer took Corrine by the arm and smiled at her.  “You have a lovely house, my dear.  Might you give me a quick tour?”

Blushing at the man, she giggled and nodded, her eyes big and her face filled with adoration.  Rush blinked.  His stepmother was acting like a high school freshman getting asked out by the popular senior football quarterback.  It was... weird.

“Oh, yes, of course.  Yes, I can do that,” she said, flustered, before she turned to Rush and warned, “Don’t say anything until I get back.”

After the pair left, the two men sat at the dining table.  Clearing his throat, Rush shifted in his chair and struggled to relax.  God, how he wished he had some drugs right now, to numb what was sure to be a horrific confrontation.  His heart started pounding frantically in his chest, and his breaths grew shallow.  He felt like a disobedient student facing the school principal.

“What did you want to talk to me about?”

_ Here we go. _

Rush resisted the urge to deflect the question and change the subject.  Screwing up his courage, he took a deep breath.  “Do you remember a few months back, when I came here to ask you for a favor for Alex?”

Warren nodded, his face inscrutable.  “I remember.  Does this have something to do with that?”

“Sort of.”  His stomach roiled.  “I... I came the next day to thank you for helping him.”

The older man sat back in his chair and waved his hand dismissively.  “Well, that was all your stepmother’s doing.  I had no intention of helping, but --”  He broke off.  “Wait.  You came?  Corrine never said anything.”

“Yeah.  Uh....  You were at the Father-Daughter dance at the country club.”  As his father stared at him blankly, Rush said, “We talked a bit.  She told me you had no intention of helping Alex... and that you had confronted her about her Adderall addiction.  She wasn’t happy about it.”

“Well, I don’t want a drug addict for the mother of my daughter.  I told her to get off them, or else.”  He shrugged.  “But what does that have to do with anything?  She seemed fine when I got home with Lilly.”

“That’s because....”   _ Shit. _  “That’s because....”

Warren lifted an eyebrow.  “Because?”  He leaned forward in his seat, his eyes narrowed.  “What are you trying to tell me?”

“Uh....”

_ Come on, just say it. _

“Will?”

“I... uh....”

_ Shit. _

“Yes?”

_ Shit.  Shit shit shit -- _

“I slept with your wife.”

There.  He said it.  Out in the open.  His insides cringed as he struggled to keep his face calm.

Shock skittered across Warren’s face.  “What is this, some sort of joke?”  He laughed with contempt.  “Stop fooling around.  What is it you really want to tell me?”

_ Shit. _  Rush ran his hand over his face and hoped that God would strike him dead so that he wouldn’t have to deal with the fallout.  Man, he could really use some blow -- or at least a hit -- right about now.  “I’m telling the truth, Dad.  Corrine and I slept together while you were at the club with Lilly.”

“No.  Corrine loves me.  We’re going to have another child.  She would never sleep with my own son.”

_ Shit shit shitshitshitshit -- _

“Look, I’m really sorry.  I swear I didn’t mean for it to happen.  I wouldn’t have said anything except... well, it’s my baby she’s carrying.”  His eyes fell to the dining table as shame incinerated his insides, making his throat raw and his eyes sting.  “I swear it wasn’t intentional, but she was angry, and I was... I was hurt, and we just kind of... just.. you know.”

His words petering out, Rush grimaced as realization crept over his father’s face.  The older man flinched, his lip curled, and his eyes became as cold as a winter storm.

“You lie.”  The words were spoken in a guttural growl.

“I wish I was --”

_ “You lie!” _

Warren leaped across the table, tackling Rush, and both men fell to the floor.  Roaring like a lion, the older man sat on his son’s chest and punched him several times.  Rush didn’t resist; he let his father pound on him.  He deserved it.  Sleeping with Corrine had been an incredibly dumb thing to do, and he knew it.  If he could have taken it all back, he would have.  He squeezed his eyes shut, blocking out the sight of his father’s rage.  Warren’s fist felt like a baseball bat smashing his face in; he prayed that he would soon lose consciousness.  Nothing like oblivion to stop the pain....

Suddenly the vicious attack stopped as the weight on his chest vanished.  Cracking open his swollen eyelids, he saw Lucifer gripping his father’s shirt as he held Warren off the floor by a good foot.  The older man clutched the hand that held him, struggling to free himself, all the while screaming epithets at Rush.

“Are you all right?” the tall man asked calmly as he glanced down at Rush.

“Yeah.”  His body shook uncontrollably as he struggled to his feet.  His head spun as nausea gripped him, and for a brief second he thought he was going to end up on the floor again.  As he held his head, praying for the dizziness to stop, he caught a glimpse of Corrine a few feet away, her face as white as ash.

“You... you told him?” she said in a hoarse voice.

Swallowing hard, he nodded.  “I had to.”  Gulping big breaths of air, he struggled not to throw up from the pain.  He steadied himself on the edge of the table.  “I’m sorry.”

“Why?”  She looked shattered.  “Why would you do this?”

Rush shook his head and turned to his father, still being held by Lucifer.  Warren had stopped struggling, but his eyes burned with hatred.  The younger man squeezed his eyes shut for a moment as he tried to slow down his racing heart.  “Dad....”

_ “Don’t _ call me that!  You are  _ not _ my son!  My son would  _ never _ impregnate my  _ wife!” _

Rush flinched at his father’s words.  “Please listen to me.  I didn’t plan to sleep with Corrine, it just....  It just happened --”

Warren glared at his son.  “My wife is not a whore!  So unless you raped her --”

“I did not rape her,” Rush shouted.  “It was mutual -- she came onto  _ me!” _

_ “Dammit, _ Will!” yelled Corrine.  “Are you trying to destroy me?!”

“Silence!” At Lucifer’s roar, a deathly stillness fell over the entire room.  Rush shot a glance at his double, who at that moment actually looked like the Devil.  His dark eyes snapped with irritation, his mouth was pulled in a tight line, and his teeth were clenched so tight that a tic was visible in his cheek.  And yet, when he spoke, he was surprisingly calm.

“Now then, let us dispense with the yelling, shall we?  I’m all for a little discord -- in fact, I revel in it -- but you humans are the sorriest lot I’ve ever seen.  Let’s sort out this little quandary so that I can go home --”

“No one’s stopping you,” Warren said.  “Why don’t you just put me down, take that son of a bitch and his whore, and leave?”

Lucifer’s eyes narrowed at the man’s words.  “Ill-mannered bugger, aren’t you?” he said, punctuating his words with a shake.  “I suggest you start showing some respect or you might find yourself in the bowels of Hell.”

“You’re mad,” the older man spat.

“I’m quite sane, Daddy Rush.  Have a care.”  Taking a deep breath, he smiled pleasantly at Rush and Corrine.  “Why don’t you both take a seat?”

Grabbing a nearby cloth napkin, Rush mopped the blood from his face as he and his stepmother sat down.  He glanced at her, but she lifted her chin and looked away.  Sighing, he wondered how his double was going to get this mess straightened out.  It seemed impossible.

Lucifer roughly seated his father in a chair.  “Right.  Let’s start with you,  _ Dad.” _  He leaned close to the man’s face, inspecting him as if he was an exotic insect.  “Tell me, what is it you desire?”

Warren stared at the man like he was crazy.  “I’m sorry -- what?”

Lucifer closed his eyes and sighed, as if searching for patience, before looking deep into the older man’s gaze.  “Tell me, what is it you desire most in this world?”

Rush watched, fascinated, as his father’s face went slack.  “I....”

“Come on, you can tell me.  What deep desires do you have in that dark heart of yours?”

“I....”  Warren swallowed.  “I want...”

“Yes?”

“I want the perfect life.”

Rush’s eyebrows shot up at that.  His dad already had that -- everything except the perfect son.  He grimaced at the thought.  Dad had definitely drawn the short straw there.

“And tell me,” Lucifer continued, “what does the perfect life entail?”

“I want... the perfect wife... the perfect daughter.”

“And what about your son?”

“I want a son... I can be proud of.  Like me -- perfect... in every way.”

Lucifer jerked away from Warren and stared out the window with its view of the backyard.  The abrupt motion shocked Rush out of the immobility he had fallen into as he had watched his double do his thing.  Blinking, he thought about what his father had said.  Perfect, huh?  Well Dad definitely did not get  _ that. _

His father blinked rapidly as he slowly came out of whatever strange hypnotic trance the other man had put him in.  Lucifer turned back to Warren, his teeth clenched and his eyes as hard as flint.  Rush felt waves of anger radiating from his double, and swallowed.  Lucifer was definitely furious.

“So... you want everyone to be like you?   _ Perfect?” _  Lucifer practically spit the last word out.  “Well, I wonder what your lovely wife wants.”  He sauntered over to Corrine, the tight lines in his face easing as he gave her a smile full of charm.  “Now then, my dear, what is it you desire?”

Corrine’s face went slack as she stared at him.  “What... do I desire?”

Lucifer smiled slightly.  “Oh yes, my dear.  Tell me... what is it your heart wants more than anything else?”

“I... I want....”

“Yes?”

“I want Warren to evolve into a good man....  One who’s... not so controlling.”

“Controlling?” Lucifer asked as he straightened.  Corrine snapped out of her daze, and gazed down at her lap.

“He tries to control everyone.”

“That’s not true --” Warren objected, but Lucifer snarled at him.

_ “Silence.” _  Turning to the woman, he said gently, “Please continue.”

“I’m so afraid... that Lilly’s going to end up as... well, as screwed up as Will.”

Turning away, Rush bit his lower lip and wished to be anywhere but here.  Shit, everyone thought he was a loser.  Heat infused his face as wretched thoughts churned in his head.  Well, he  _ was _ a trainwreck.  It would be a miracle if his double could get everything back on track for him.

“If you think he’s so screwed up, why did you sleep with him?” Lucifer asked.

Corrine looked up at that.  “I was angry.  Furious.”  She glared at her husband.  “Warren accused me of being a bad mother.  I’m not the bad one in this marriage.   _ He _ is.  He constantly tells me what to do, who to go out with, what to eat, where to go....  And he’s doing the same thing to Lilly -- telling her ‘Don’t disappoint Daddy’ while he tries to mold her into the perfect daughter.  Damn it, I was so angry, and Will was right there.  I saw the chance to take revenge... and so I took it.”

Rush winced.  When Corrine had come onto him, he had been overwhelmed by the pain of his father once again abandoning him, as well as her beauty.  Even though he had known she was angry, he hadn’t once thought about what her motivations were.  Like a fool, he had let his dick do the thinking for him.  He regretted it later, but it had never crossed his mind that she was so cold-blooded.

“Revenge sex.”  Lucifer’s face broke out into a wicked grin.  “Impressive.”

“Come on, Corrine, you know I’m not to blame for any of this,” Warren spat.  “If you weren’t so weak --”

“And whose fault is that?  I know I’m a trophy wife, but you won’t even give me a chance to live a little!  You have to control everything!”

“You’re wrong --”

Rush massaged his temples, feeling a massive headache coming on as he listened to the argument.  He couldn’t see any good solution to this.  Shit.  There went his happily-ever-after with the love of his life.  “Come on, you guys, stop arguing.”

Warren turned on his son like a viper.  “You slept with my  _ wife. _  I have a right to be angry --”

“Look, how many times do I have to say it?  I’m sorry --”

_ “Don’t _ be sorry, Rush.”  Lucifer rounded on the older man and leaned close to his face.  “Right.  You don’t get it yet, do you?  This is all your fault.  Yours,  _ Dad. _  And only yours.”

Warren gave a bark of sardonic laughter.  “You’re insane.”

“You’d like to think so, wouldn’t you?”  Lucifer straightened, a look of disgust on his face.  “Blame everyone else for what you’ve done.  Blame your wife for being weak.  Blame your son for making mistakes.  You hold everyone up to this ridiculously high standard and punish them when they can’t live up to your expectations.”

“Look, I don’t know what Will’s told you, but I can’t be bailing him out whenever he gets in trouble --”

“Have you ever considered that maybe he wouldn’t be in any trouble if you had been a good father?”

“I  _ am _ a good father!”

“Really?” Lucifer’s voice took on a hard edge.  “Your family has free will and they should be allowed to do whatever they want -- but no, can’t have that, can we?  Everything has to follow your plans, your bloody designs.  Maybe if you weren’t such a controlling git, your son wouldn’t have felt the need to rebel.  Maybe if you showed just an ounce of understanding instead of kicking him out, he wouldn’t have had to suffer!”

The older man let out a scornful laugh. “I don’t have to listen to this,” he said as he tried to stand up.  Lucifer grabbed his shoulder and slammed him back down in his chair.

“You will  _ sit!” _

Even though he was not the object of Lucifer’s attention, Rush flinched at his tone, which was as sharp as a knife blade.  With sudden clarity, he realized that his double was no longer talking about him, but rather himself, and that the anger he was now displaying wasn’t really meant for Warren, but for his own father.

Glancing quickly at his father, Rush saw unease infuse Warren’s face as he slowly realized how angry Lucifer was.

“Controlling knob head with your bloody plans,” snarled the standing man.  “Did you ever think about your children for once in your life?  All your son wanted was a little freedom -- did you give it to him?  Did you ever give him a chance to be who he wanted to be?  He just wanted your approval, but you withheld that, didn’t you?”

With the speed of a striking snake, Lucifer suddenly whipped Warren out of the chair and slammed him against the nearby wall.  Smiling wickedly, he said, “Well... I believe it’s time someone punished you for being the manipulative bastard that you are.”

 

 


	5. Resolution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A super-huge thank you to my most excellent beta, ScooterThyme! Thank you so much, you rock!!

 

 

Lucifer pinned Warren to the wall, his whole being flooded with such fury that he could hardly think straight.  Growling at the man like an animal, he tightened his fingers in the man’s shirt and thrust him upwards, lifting him right off the floor.  There was a strange roaring in his ears as tightness clenched his chest and squeezed.  Here was a father who had ruined his son’s life because he couldn’t unbend and let his son have free will.  Here was a father who was so bloody controlling that no one could escape him.  Here was a father who --

“Hey, Lucifer,” he heard Rush say.  “Hey, man, stop.”

“Let me go,” Warren said, squirming in the fallen angel’s tight grip.  “You can’t do this to me --”

Bloody hell, just hearing the sod’s voice amped up his rage.  Lucifer bared his teeth at the man.  “You need punishment.  After all the suffering you’ve caused --”

Rush pulled at his arm.  “Come on, he’s my dad, not yours --”

The fallen angel was deaf to reason.  “All that suffering because of your bloody manipulations --”

“Lucifer, stop!  Please!”  The doctor pleaded.

Warren twisted against the wall, desperate to escape.  “This is assault!  I’ll have you arrested --”

 _“Silence!”_  Lucifer could no longer withhold his rage.  Keeping his back to the other humans, he glared at Warren with eyes that glowed bright like fiery embers.  The older man gasped as he stared at the fallen angel, his breath catching and his movements stilling.

“Oh god,” he squeaked as the blood drained from his face.

“He’s not here, but _I_ am,” the fallen angel growled.  “And I will tear your bloody bollocks off and stamp on them until they’re just a smear of red on the floor!”  Thrusting his face closer to Warren’s, he grinned.  “Oh how I wish I was still in Hell -- I’d teach you a thing or two about control.”

“Please, Lucifer -- don’t hurt my dad,” he heard from behind him.  Damn pesky human!  Why couldn’t he leave him alone?  He was doing his job!  He felt Rush’s hands continuing to tug at him -- or perhaps it was Corrine’s -- but he ignored them.  Why did they want him to stop?  He was finally in his element!  His insides vibrated like a hummingbird’s wing as glee ripped through him.  It had been so long since he’d properly punished anyone....  Oh, how he’d make the human suffer for everything he had done!

He was vaguely aware of voices behind him, but the sound was dull, muffled.  The roaring in his ears blocked out most sound, except for Warren’s gasping breath.  Lucifer grinned as he stared deep into the eyes of his captive.

“Lucifer.”

Chloe’s voice brought him back to his senses faster than a bucket of water dumped on his head.  Blinking hard, he let the light fade from his eyes and turned to see the source of his detective’s voice.  Rush was holding a phone up to his ear.

“D-Detective?” he said as his rage dissipated.

“What the hell are you doing?”  Her voice crackled over the phone’s speaker.

Lucifer suddenly felt like he was wading in molasses as he lowered Warren to the ground and took the phone.  “Why -- how did you know --”

“Rush called me.  What the _hell_ are you doing?”  Although she sounded angry, he heard the concern lacing her voice.  He squeezed his eyes shut.  Even as he struggled to hold onto his righteous rage, her voice had the unfortunate effect of calming him.  Bloody hell, he needed to hold onto his anger and mete out punishment!  But... he couldn’t.  Not when she was on the phone.  Rubbing his hand against his forehead, he sighed.  

“I’m helping Rush with his... problem.”  He glanced at Warren sitting on the floor with eyes huge in his face.  Rush and Corrine hurried to the older man’s side, but he didn’t even spare them a glance.  

“Rush said you were threatening his dad.”

“Ah, yes.  Right.  I was angry.”  He walked a few paces away from the humans so that he could have a little privacy with Chloe.

“Don’t make me go over there and arrest you.”

Her threat made him chuckle as the burning fury finally released him from its clutches.  “Oooh, will you be whipping out your handcuffs?  You’ll need to keep me company in the back of the squad car.”  His voice took on a flirty air.  “You know, there aren’t any door handles in the back seat.  Why, we might be trapped for days while we have wild, wicked s--”

“Lucifer, behave.”

“But Detective, wouldn’t you like to experience the splendor of naked me?  I mean, at some point, surely you would want to inspect my wedding tackle --”

 _“Lucifer.”_  He didn’t know how it was possible for her to communicate an eye roll over the phone, but she somehow did.

Pouting, he capitulated.  “Oh, very well.”

There was a short pause before she said, “Have you gotten everything sorted for Rush?”

He nodded.  ‘Yes, I believe so.  A few minor things to discuss with the father, and then I can drop him off at his place.”

“Good.”  There was a short pause before she said, “Come home.”

Home?  Her choice of words surprised him, even as a pleasant warmth flooded his chest and seeped into his limbs.  Did she mean his penthouse or LUX?  Or perhaps... had she meant her apartment?  Heat climbed up his neck and into his cheeks, before a soft smile touched his face.  “Very well,” he said in a tender voice before hanging up the phone.  Taking a deep breath, he reveled in the warmth pleasantly heating his insides, before looking at the three humans across the room.

“Right.”  Straightening, he walked back.

At his approach, Warren yelped and pushed himself hard against the wall he was leaning against.  Both Corrine and Rush looked confused at the older man’s actions, and glanced from him to Lucifer.  The fallen angel set the phone down on the dining table, then crouched in front of Warren.

“Now then, let’s come to an understanding, shall we?” he said.  “You know who I am now, don’t you?”

The older man nodded, his eyes never leaving the fallen angel’s.  “You... you’re the Devil.”

Rush laughed as he glanced from his father to Lucifer.  “Oh, come on, Dad!  He’s not the Devil.”

Warren grabbed Rush’s shirt with shaking hands and pulled his son’s face close.  “Didn’t you see?  Didn’t you?” he cried hoarsely, his eyes rolling this way and that.

Corrine, on the other side of her husband, gave her stepson an odd glance.  “What is he talking about?  What’s wrong with him?”

Shrugging, Rush said, “I don’t know.”

Squatting in front of the humans, the Devil sighed.  It would have been lovely if he had still been in Hell, so that he could torture the man a bit and show him what he did to controlling, arrogant narcissists.  Unfortunately, he was on Earth -- and now that Chloe had put an end to his fun, he’d have to use words to scare the poor bugger into changing his ways.  Not very satisfying, but the only option, if he didn’t want his partner to come down on him like a ton of bricks... which maybe wasn’t such a bad thing...?  She was so sexy when she was angry --

Bloody hell, he had to concentrate!  Shaking his head to clear it of arousing images of Chloe, he heaved a big sigh and looked carefully at Warren.  “You’ve been a very naughty dad.”

Ignoring the two family members beside him, Warren just shivered.

“But there still may be hope for you yet, if you mend your ways.  Who knows, Dad might give you a break -- maybe -- although he’s not really the forgiving type.  But mayhap he might in your case, seeing as how you’re so similar to him.”  Lucifer smiled wickedly.  “Now then, I want you to stop being such a controlling git.  Do you hear me?”

“I’m not a --”

The fallen angel lifted an eyebrow, immediately silencing the older man.

“What did you say, Daddy Rush?”

For a long moment Warren was silent as he locked eyes with the Devil, before his finally slid away.  “I’ll stop being so controlling.”

“And you’ll be more supportive of your family,” Lucifer said.  

The older man nodded as he clenched his hands tightly in front of him.

“You’ll be accepting of this baby your wife is going to have.  The baby is your grandchild, after all -- your own flesh and blood -- and seeing as how it’s your own fault that your lovely wife had sex with Rush, I think it’s only fitting that you take care of her and the little spawn.”

All three humans stared at the Devil at those words.  He wasn’t quite sure why -- after all, it wasn’t as if Corrine was his double’s biological mother, was it?  She was hardly going to have a baby with three heads!  Well, at least he didn’t think so....  Maybe?  Human physiology was a complete mystery to him.  

“No,” Warren grated.  “No, I’m not taking care of the baby, or that whore --”

“You really want to end up in Hell, don’t you?” Lucifer asked, smirking as he stood up.  “Very well.  Accommodating you will not be a problem.  We have an infinite number of cells, all full of _wondrous_ torture --”

Warren’s eyes grew round with fear.  “Wait --”

“Lucifer, what are you saying?” Rush asked, his brows pinched in confusion.  “You’re not the Devil.”

He said nothing, merely raised an eyebrow at his double, then cocked his head at the older man.  Warren had lost even more color, resembling a corpse.  “Your choice, Daddy-O.  Take care of the baby, or...?”

“No!  No....”  Swallowing hard, he grabbed his son’s arm and tried to cower behind him.  

Rush stared at his father in surprise.  “Dad, what the hell is wrong with you?!”

Warren turned horrified eyes to his son.  “He’s the Devil!  Didn’t you see his eyes?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about --”

Warren pointed at Lucifer.  “His eyes glowed like fire!  He’s the Devil!”

Rush laughed nervously.  “Dad, he’s not the Devil.  If you saw his eyes glow, it was probably some weird reflection from outside --”

“No.  I know what I saw.”  The older man squeezed his eyes shut, then took a deep breath before opening them again.  “I refuse to go to Hell.  I’m a good man.”

Lucifer laughed uproariously at that.  “A good man?  After what you’ve done?”

“I _am_ a good man!  Everything I did was to make my son better!  I did it because I loved him!”

“Loved him?!”  The fallen angel started to feel his temper rise once again.  “Being a controlling git is a strange way of showing love!”

“Please, Lucifer, just stop,” Rush said.

Frowning, the Devil bit his tongue.  He truly could not understand why Rush wasn’t more angry.  He watched in silence as his doppelganger shot a pleading glance at Corrine, who sighed.  

“Warren, look, I know it was wrong of me, but I do love you --” Corrine said softly as she squeezed his arm.  The older man glanced at her, his eyes full of disbelief.

“You slept with my son.”

“I know, but I was angry.  Please, Warren --”

Lucifer sighed.  It looked like Rush’s dad needed a little more persuasion.  “Eternal damnation awaits....” he said to no one in particular as he glanced up at the ceiling, then back at the cowering man with an intense expression.  “Come on, what do you say, Big Daddy Rush?  Wouldn’t you rather change your ways and be the man your family wants you to be?  Or would you rather spend an eternity in --”

The older man covered his face with his hands.  “Okay.  Okay!  I’ll take care of them.”

“Lovely!”  The fallen angel rocked back on his heels, finally feeling a weight off his shoulders.  He grinned as he thrust his chest out.  Everything was now solved!  He was so proud of himself.  Perhaps this would impress Chloe?  He hoped so!  Maybe it would lead to riveting, heart-pounding, erotic sex...?

“Dad, thanks --” Rush said, taking a hold of his arm, but his father shrugged off his hand.

“Don’t touch me.” Warren said with a glare.  “I’ll never forgive you for this, Will.  I’ll take care of Corrine and the baby, but don’t ever come back here again.  This baby will be _mine,_ do you hear?  Not yours.  I want you out of my life.  You can get the Devil to do your bidding, but you can’t make me love you -- not even with him threatening me with eternal damnation.”

The younger man sat back on his heels, his mouth twisting in bitterness.  “Did you ever love me, Dad?”

“Why did you think I was so hard on you?  You had potential and you squandered it.”

Rush shook his head sadly.  “You just wanted a clone of yourself.”

Warren made a dismissive sound.  Hatred oozed from his voice as he spoke.  “Believe what you like.  I did love you once, but I don’t anymore -- you can bet on it.”

“But --”

 _“No._  From this point on, you’re dead to me.  I no longer have a son.”

Shoulders slumping, Rush nodded.  “I... I understand.”

With narrowed eyes, the fallen angel looked from one man to the other.  So the younger Rush had now been kicked out for good by his father, just like Lucifer had been with his....  He felt the injustice of it all burn within him like a wildfire, whipping up his fury.  Lifting his chin at his double, he asked, “Shall I threaten him more?”

The tall man looked at him with defeat in his eyes and shook his head.  “No.  If this is the price I have to pay for my mistakes, then so be it.”

Cocking his head, Lucifer studied Rush and the resolve in his face, before finally nodding.  “Very well.  Then let us quit this wretched place, before I change my mind and carry out my threat to torture your father.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

The drive back to Maison Cresson was made in complete silence.

The fallen angel thought hard about the confrontation with Rush’s father.  He thought he’d feel good about threatening the bastard, and yet... he didn’t.  He was ambivalent about the whole affair.  Oh, he was glad that he was able to punish Warren for being such a controlling wanker -- at least he could help Rush in that regard.  But he hadn’t been able to make the man love his own son, and that brought a lump to his throat.  Was dear old Dad trying to tell him something with this strange encounter?  And if so, then what?  That Lucifer would always be hated by his own father?  That dear old Dad believed himself to be good, like Warren Rush did, even after all that he had done?  That the reason he had thrown Lucifer into Hell had been because he loved him?

No.  That made no sense at all, and yet... it bothered him.  Shaking his head, the fallen angel shoved the disturbing thoughts away.  He didn’t want to think about his dad.  It was too upsetting.

When Lucifer finally pulled up to the curb, he turned to look at his double.  Rush still appeared shaken from the confrontation with his father, for his face was ashen and his shoulders slumped.  The fallen angel felt a stab of something -- perhaps pity? -- for the man.  

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out quite the way you had wanted,” he finally said.

Rush turned at his words, and shook his head ruefully.  “At least it’s all solved.  He knows, and he’ll take care of Corrine and the baby.  I won’t have access to my child, but I will have Sarah... and really, she’s all that matters.”  He gave his companion a considering look.  “You’re pretty good at fixing people’s problems.  I don’t suppose you want to fix Alex’s?  He had a major falling out with his wife.”

“Alex?”  Lucifer’s eyebrows shot up as he thought back, then nodded.  “Ah, the drunk gentleman from the bar.  Well, tell him to visit me at my nightclub, LUX, if he wishes to make a deal.”

Rush chuckled.  “I will.”  Reaching over, he opened the car door and stepped out onto the curb.

The Devil studied his double as the man glanced up at the hotel with a pensive expression.  Frowning, he asked, “Will you be all right?”

“I think so.”  The doctor pulled out the ring box from his pocket, his face breaking into a tender smile.  “I can propose now.”

“Good luck.  I hope you have every happiness with your Sarah.”

“Thanks, man.  I owe you big time.”

Lucifer grinned at that.  “Yes, you do.”

Rush started to walk toward the hotel entrance, before he turned back to the car.  “You... you aren’t really the Devil, are you?”

The fallen angel’s eyes twinkled like stars.  “What do you think?”

“I think....”  The tall man thought a bit, then said, “I think you should go and be with _your_ Sarah.”

 _“My_ Sarah?”

Rush grinned.  “Your detective, Lucifer.  I’m not blind.”  With a jaunty wave, the doctor jogged to the entrance.  Stunned at his comment, the fallen angel watched until his doppelganger disappeared through the glass double doors.

“The detective is my Sarah?”  He snorted, then chuckled.  “Ridiculous.”

 

 

________________________________________

 

 

And yet Lucifer found himself driving to Chloe’s apartment straight away.  He didn’t even know why, other than that he had a sudden urge to see her.  Perhaps it was because he wanted to tell her how he had solved all of Rush’s problems by himself, or because she had told him to come home.  In any case, once he reached his destination, he let himself into her apartment.

“Lucifer!”

A little body came barreling into him as soon as he walked into the door, and he yelped in distress.  Bloody hell, the little spawn never ceased to startle him!  Trixie attached herself around his waist and grinned up at him.  That look was terrifying, for it only meant one thing -- that she wanted something.  Bloody hell, what did the little human possibly want from him?  Chocolate cake?  He didn’t have any of that, but he supposed he could give her cash....

He grimaced as he struggled to somehow remove her arms from around his waist without touching her.  “H-hello, child.”

“I’m so glad you came.  Do you want to help me with my homework?  It’s math.”  She grabbed his hand and dragged him to the dining table.  Shoving a piece of paper at him, she said, “Here -- can you help me with this?”

Lucifer squinted at the problem.  “‘Use number bonds to help you skip count by seven by making ten and adding to the ones.’  Bloody hell, what kind of nonsense is this?!”

Trixie shrugged.  “I dunno.  That’s why I’m asking you!”

He looked down at her with a disgruntled expression.  “Well, go ask your mother.  The Devil doesn’t deal with number bonds.”

Just then Chloe walked into the room.  As he caught sight of her, a warm rush flooded through his veins and his heartbeat sped up.  He blinked in surprise.  Bloody hell, what was happening to him?  Clearing his throat, he said as suavely as he could, “Hello, Detective!”

She rewarded him with a smile as she walked by.  “Oh, you’re here!  I thought I heard you come in.”

“Yes, well, your little one has a habit of announcing me.”  He followed her into the kitchen, unable to stop himself from getting pulled along in her wake.  It was almost as if she was a magnet, and he was made of iron, helpless to resist her.  Why was he feeling this way?  It was baffling.

Chloe started pulling frozen food packages out of the freezer. “Maze is off on a job so she won’t be eating with us today.”  Slanting a glance at him, she asked, “How did it go with Rush?  Did you get your favor?”

“Oh yes.”  Standing tall with his chest out and his arms akimbo, he smiled brightly.  “You’ll be proud of me, Detective!  I solved all of his problems by myself!  Well, with the exception of that pesky possible murder charge which you helped with, but that was minor compared to everything else.  Are you impressed?”

She merely snorted, then raised an eyebrow at him.  “You didn’t do anything illegal, I hope?”

She wasn’t impressed?  His face fell and he dropped his hands to his sides.  “You wound me, Detective.  Would I do that?”

She tapped her chin with her index finger as her gaze shot to the ceiling.  “Well, I seem to remember you threatening Rush’s father --”

Lucifer waved his hand dismissively and gave her a reassuring smile.  “It ended as well as it could have, my dear.  Nothing for you to be concerned about.”

“I hope so.  I’d hate to arrest you,” Chloe said, chuckling as she set the frozen food packages on the counter.

“Detective....”

She looked up at his tone, her face growing serious.  “What is it?”

The fallen angel bit his lower lip, wondering how to best ask his question.  “When you’re raising your little human, do you... control her?”

Chloe blinked.  “Excuse me?”

Lucifer’s mouth twisted to one side as he struggled to explain himself.  “Right.  Rush’s father... tried to control his entire family and make them perfect.  Rush ended up chafing under the authoritarian rule, and got into... well, trouble.  Warren said he tried to make him perfect because he loved him.  Is that... normal?”

As if sensing his confusion, she walked over to his side and took his hand in hers.  “No, Lucifer.  That’s not normal.  You do have to teach children right from wrong and make sure they walk the right path, but that doesn’t mean you try to force them to be perfect.  They need boundaries -- I’ve told you that before in regards to Trixie... but I would never try to force her to be something she’s not.”

“Would you kick her out of the house, if she rebelled?”

Chloe cocked her head as she considered Lucifer’s question.  “I would try to find out why she’s rebelling and deal with it.  I wouldn’t kick her out.  I would try to help her.”

He looked down at their linked hands long and hard as her words swirled around in his head.  Her compassion filled him with warmth.  She was a fine parent -- nay, the best -- and he felt a strange sort of pride in her for that.

“You’re a good mother,” he finally said.  “I wish my father was as good as you.”

She squeezed his fingers and gave him a tender smile.  “So tell me -- what happened with Rush’s father?”

“I told him he’d go to Hell for being such a controlling git unless he mended his ways.”  When he saw Chloe’s mouth quirk upwards and her eyebrows lift, he bristled.  “What?  I _am_ the Devil, Detective.  I can threaten with the best of them.”

She snorted.  “Sure.”  Her eyes twinkled as she asked, “And did it work?”

Lucifer’s brow furrowed.  “I think so, although it’s hard to tell with such an arrogant swine.”

“I’m glad you gave him a second chance.”

His mouth dropped open.  “But I didn’t --”

“You don’t think so?”  Chuckling, she squeezed his fingers again.  “You told him to mend his ways so that he wouldn’t end up in Hell.  I’d call that a second chance.”

As Chloe released his hand and went back to her boxes of frozen food, Lucifer’s head reeled from her words.  Was that what Dad had been trying to tell him?  That he should give his father a second chance in order to make things right?  Everything inside him cringed at the thought.  He’d never forgive that manipulative tosser!  And yet... hadn’t he given a second chance to Warren Rush?  He thought hard.  Was it worth at least considering...?  Perhaps, but later -- much, much later.  After several millennia had passed.  Maybe.

Lost in thought, he watched Chloe open the frozen food packages for a long moment before he realized what she was doing.  

“Bloody hell, what are you preparing?” Lucifer asked as he stared in horror at her.  Pushing her aside, he swept all the boxes into the trash and glared at her, his arms folded in front of him.  “I refuse to eat cardboard for my celebration dinner.”

She stared at him as if he was mad.  “Celebration dinner?  What are you talking about?  And that was perfectly good food from Trader Joe’s --”

“No.  I reject it.  I solved Rush’s problems all by myself and got a favor to call in later -- we must celebrate with good food.”

Chuckling, Chloe shook her head and opened the refrigerator.  “I’m glad you came over for dinner, but Trixie has a lot of homework tonight so we have to stay at home.”

Lucifer frowned.  He had hoped to take her and the little one out for a fine meal, but... oh, well.  Fine.  He’d cook, then -- he wanted them to eat something tasty.  With a sigh, he nudged her to one side and took stock of her refrigerator.  “I will prepare a meal for you,” he groused.  “I am not eating cardboard tonight, of all nights.”

As he started pulling ingredients out for spaghetti alla carbonara, his movements slowed and he shot her a puzzled look.  “Why do you have pancetta in your refrigerator?  You never have anything so fancy in stock.”  After glancing in the refrigerator once again, he straightened and looked at her.  “Did... did you plan on having me make dinner?”

A teasing smile lit her lips.  “Not really, but... well, I know how much you like to cook, and it doesn’t hurt to be prepared....”

Lucifer grinned at her hopeful expression.  “Why, you clever minx!  So is this why you asked me to come home?”

“Well, I did hope....”  Chloe’s eyes sparkled at him like diamonds.  It reminded the fallen angel of the ring Rush was going to give to his Sarah....  His face grew tender as he studied her beauty, before he gave himself a little shake.

Obviously he was losing his mind.

And yet he found himself proud of Chloe and her devious plan.  “Well played, Detective,” he said with a chuckle as he got to work on dinner.  “Well played, indeed!”

As he started preparing the meal, Lucifer found himself thinking of Rush’s words about Chloe being his Sarah.  Which was ridiculous, really... for surely the warm feeling that flooded his insides and made his stomach flip-flop in the most decidedly uncomfortable manner was indigestion...?  Yes, yes, surely that was it.  And if it ever turned out to be anything different, at least he now had a doctor he could call.  

He decided not to dwell upon why Chloe made him feel the way he did.  The warm feeling felt... good, he supposed.  As he bustled around the kitchen, casting quick glances at her helping Trixie with her homework in the other room, he realized he was happy.  He paused for a moment, surprised.  Strange, how being here with her and her little one made his life feel... complete.  He set down his cooking utensils and studied Chloe from afar.  As his expression softened, a slow smile lit his face.  His Sarah, hmm?  Well, perhaps there was something to what the good doctor had said, after all....

Turning back to the stove, the Lord of Hell returned to his dinner preparations, feeling content and at home for the first time in his very long life.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all enjoyed this Rush/Lucifer crossover, and I hope it gives you some resolution to Rush S1x10. Thank you all very much for reading!


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